Bio Blast: LSU Tigers

The field has been trimmed from 64 to 16. Kentucky baseball is still standing, and they’re set to face a familiar foe this weekend. No. 5 seed LSU will welcome Nick Mingione’s ballclub to Alex Box Stadium this weekend for the second time this season.

LSU took 2 of 3 from Kentucky in a hotly contested SEC series, and now the winner of this upcoming series will earn the right to make the trip to Omaha to participate in the College World Series. The Big Blue Nation has some baseball fever after a wild weekend at Kentucky Proud Park, and now it’s time to get ready for the super regionals.

Jay Johnson’s LSU squad is led by the best pitcher in college baseball and a lineup that is full of long ball power.

College baseball’s top ace

Head coach Jay Johnson went to the transfer portal in the offseason to find some upgrades for his pitching staff. The former Arizona head coach was able to find the best starting pitcher in college baseball. Air Force transfer Paul Skenes has been elite on the mound for the Bayou Bengals.

The 6-foot-6, 247-pound two-way player was a two-time All-American for the Falcons. As a sophomore, Skenes started 15 games and posted a 2.73 ERA while also hitting .314/.412/.634 at the plate with 13 home runs. LSU has allowed him to focus on pitching, and the results have been stellar.

• 16 starts (11-2 record)
• 1.90 ERA/0.78 WHIP
• 99.1 innings pitched
• 179 strikeouts (16.2 strikeouts per 9 innings)

Skenes has reached double-digit strikeouts in 13 of 16 starts. LSU is 13-3 in his starts with the only losses to Arkansas (x2) and South Carolina. The big right-handed pitcher will bring home some more All-American honors this season to go along with some individual awards. UK can expect to see the big ace on the mound on Saturday afternoon.

Paul Skenes, 101mph on his 124th Pitch. pic.twitter.com/qvdxjpdHwV

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) June 2, 2023

College baseball’s top hitter

Paul Skenes has been a revelation, but Dylan Crews keeps exceeding sky-high expectations. The former top-15 recruit was a consensus first-team All-American in 2022 when the outfielder slashed .349/.463/.691 with 22 home runs and 72 RBI. The junior has seen his plate discipline improve this season and is the heavy favorite to be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 MLB Draft.

• .432/.573/.736 (1.31 OPS)
• 17 home runs (32 extra-base hits)
• 63 RBI
• 61 walks, 40 strikeouts

Crews making that one SPICEY!!!#RoadToOmaha x 🎥 ESPN2 / @LSUbaseball pic.twitter.com/VdKIGPiGxD

— NCAA Baseball (@NCAABaseball) June 5, 2023

The Florida native sets the tone for one of the most explosive offenses in college baseball. Kentucky must have a plan for dealing with Crews. In the regular season, Nick Mingione decided to put Crews on base when the game was on the line. Kentucky would go on to lose that Sunday contest by one run after the LSU lineup made UK pay for the move. Will we see a similar strategy this weekend?

Offensive powder keg

An argument can be made that LSU has the best offense in college baseball. The Tigers have eight players who have hit at least 10 home runs. Eight more players have at least 38 RBI. Four starters are slugging over .630. The Tigers rank inside of the top top 10 in numerous statistical categories.

• On-base percentage: .437 (No. 2 overall)
• Home runs per game: 2.03 (No. 3 overall)
• Slugging percentage: .561 (No. 3 overall)
• Runs per game: 9.2 (No. 6 overall)
• Walks: 354 (No. 9 overall)

Dylan Crews gets most of the credit, but NC State transfer Tommy White (.378, 20 home runs, 93 RBI) and Cade Beloso (.329, 13 home runs, 38 RBI) are two other starters with an OPS clearing 1.00. The Tigers have big-league balance and terrific lineup balance. Holding this crew to 3-4 runs in a single game will be a difficult task.

Suspect pitching depth

Paul Skenes is outstanding. That is not a secret. However, LSU’s biggest weakness in a postseason series could be the lack of quality pitching in the games where Skenes is not on the mound.

The ace is the only LSU starter with an ERA under 4.0. Despite having a lockdown guy leading the pitching staff, LSU ranks No. 44 in ERA (4.60). Defense has also been an issue at times. The Bayou Bengals rank No. 64 in fielding percentage (.975).

If Kentucky gets into a home run derby with LSU, things could get ugly quickly. However, LSU’s pitching staff will give up runs and make some mistakes on defense. If UK can make contact and put some pressure on, the Bat Cats could be able to steal some runs this weekend.