Both the LSU Tigers and the Tennessee Volunteers have an argument for who has the best bullpen in all of college baseball. Teams such as Arkansas, Florida, Wake Forest and others would respectfully disagree.
However, Thursday night’s pitching duel between junior right-handers Paul Skenes and Chase Dollander may have created the best baseball game that division one baseball fans will have the chance to witness all season. The atmosphere in Baton Rouge was electric and LSU baseball set a paid attendance record of 13,068.
As if the game needed another reason for fans to tune in, both Thursday night starters lived up to the hype. Skenes fired 107 total pitches in seven innings with 12 strikeouts while allowing five hits and one run. Dollander slung 89 total pitches in 4.2 innings with three strikeouts while giving up two runs on four hits and one home run. For those of us that are not MLB pitching scouts, those are great numbers when facing a top ten nationally ranked team.
The mind-boggling idea is that both teams have such deep bullpens that even without their top aces on the mound, the pitching production will see little drop off. The starters for game two and three were announced before the series started and will most likely aid in recreating the same atmosphere from game one.
Junior right-hander Ty Floyd, who is 4-0 on the season with 31 strikeouts, will start for the Tigers. Sophomore righty Chase Burns, who is 2-1 with 59 strikeouts, will start for the Volunteers. Game three features two sophomore right-handers, Thatcher Hurd for LSU and Drew Beam for Tennessee. Hurd is 2-0 on the season with 32 strikeouts while Beam is 3-1 with 27 strikeouts.
Another idea that is hard to wrap your head around is the fact that Skenes was not credited with the win in Thursday’s 5-2 LSU win in game one. Junior right-hander Garret Edwards relieved Nate Ackenhausen on the mound after LSU head coach Jay Johnson noticed he was still dealing with a hamstring issue. The injury was preventing him from reaching his peak performance. Edwards improved to 4-0 on the season by only throwing 24 pitches with two strikeouts and allowing zero runs on two hits. Coincidentally, Edwards finished with the exact same ERA as Skenes, 0.81.
Edwards’ success in the relief role shows how deep LSU’s bullpen is and reminds fans that this isn’t the same LSU baseball team from last season. If Edwards didn’t play for LSU, he would be another school’s starter, or potentially, a program’s ace.
Tennessee’s reliever and junior right-hander Seth Halvorsen also held his own against the flaming LSU bats. He was, however, charged with the loss. He fired 52 total pitches in 3.1 innings with one strikeout. Halvorsen allowed three runs on three hits.
The art of pitching has grown so much over the years that appreciation for the skill occasionally falls by the wayside. One thing is certain, though. College baseball is overflowing with MLB talents that excite fans and scouts everywhere.
