LSU coach Jay Johnson not ruling out changes to pitching rotation after series loss at Auburn
LSU has been nearly unbeatable in series openers this season, and there’s one simple reason for that: Paul Skenes.
Skenes has been the most dominant pitcher in college baseball this season. He’s one of the top prospects in the country alongside Dylan Crews, and both could be the first two players off the board in this summer’s MLB draft.
But beyond Skenes, the Tigers have had some troubles on the mound. Pitching inconsistency in Games 2 and 3 have cost this team recently, most notably this past weekend.
LSU dropped its first series of the season on the road against a red-hot Auburn team. After Skenes tossed a 3-0 shutout in Game 1 on Friday night, the Tigers were defeated 8-6 in Game 2 and were embarrassed in a series-clinching 12-2 run-rule loss on Sunday.
The starting pitching situation outside of Skenes is becoming a concern as the Tigers gear up for a potential College World Series run. After the loss to Auburn, coach Jay Johnson said changes to the rotation were a possibility moving forward, according to The Advocate’s Leah Vann.
Jay Johnson on reevaluating the rotation: "Outside of Paul (Skenes), yes, that's not abnormal for us to be honest. We'll find a way to line It up better." #LSU
— Leah Vann (@LVann_Sports) May 7, 2023
Ty Floyd has held down the Saturday job for most of the year, while Vanderbilt transfer Christian Little has been the Sunday starter of late. However, UCLA transfer Thatcher Hurd held that title before struggles relegated him to the bullpen.
If LSU wanted to bring in a different weekend starter, Hurd is an option. Other options include Javen Coleman, who recently returned from injury, and other bullpen arms such as Gavin Guidry, Sam Dutton, Griffin Herring or Riley Cooper.
Unfortunately, the top bullpen arm in Garrett Edwards, who many thought could develop into a starting option, was lost for the season last month after undergoing Tommy John surgery.
Exactly how Johnson will address the pitching rotation (or if he will at all) remains to be seen. But with only two SEC series remaining, LSU only has so much time to experiment with things before the games really start to count.
More Baseball!
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Auburn takes a wacky Game 2 to tie the series against LSU
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