It wasn’t the first time the Tigers’ defense hurt Aaron Nola’s stat line, but in Sunday night’s 2-1 loss against UCLA in the first round of the 2013 College World Series, the errors certainly hurt more than ever.
The LSU baseball squad took the field at TD Ameritrade knowing about the Bruins’ strengths: UCLA pitches well and plays “California style” small-ball.
UCLA did both to perfection against an LSU club renowned for its potent lineup and stellar defense.
When the Tigers needed defense most, though, several mental mistakes resulted in two Bruins runs and the downfall of the LSU ball club in the team’s first game in Omaha.
The first error, an errant throw by junior catcher Ty Ross on a bunt by junior center fielder Brian Carroll, put a runner on second base with no outs. Carroll would score later in the inning on a sacrifice fly to left field.
“Ty Ross has been a phenomenal catcher for us in his career,” said LSU coach Paul Mainieri. “The guy put the bunt down and put a little pressure on us, and we make an errant throw. We handed them the two runs.”
The second mistake was the most costly, though.
With a runner on second and two outs, UCLA sophomore right fielder Eric Filia hit a ground ball to LSU freshman shortstop Alex Bregman.
Bregman proceeded to misplay the ball and kick it into center field, resulting in the second Bruins run. The error was Bregman’s 17th in 2013.
“Alex has been great all year for us at short,” Mainieri said. “He just kicked the ball. This is a very humbling game, and the kid did the best he could, but he just didn’t make that play. We’re not going to blame this loss on Alex Bregman.”
Nola has seen his defense falter behind him before.
In the Regional round against Sam Houston State, the Tigers’ defense committed five errors that resulted in five unearned runs for the sophomore right-hander.
Against UCLA, the two errors had the same effect, resulting in two unearned runs for Nola.
The Tigers have now committed 53 errors this season.
