Off to the races.
The No. 2 LSU baseball team has slapped together an impressive nine-game win streak, and a major part of its success comes from its aggressive and alert baserunning.
“We have a different mindset this year,” said senior outfielder Jared Foster. “We’re trying to use [stealing] more to our advantage because we have a lot of guys who can run, so there’s no reason why we shouldn’t go out there and try to run more often and coach has been giving us the sign a lot more, so that helps us out too.” 
The Tigers (12-1) are one of the most efficient baserunning teams in the Southeastern Conference. They’ve only been caught stealing four times out of 31 attempts so far this season, an impressive 83 percent rate.
Entering Wednesday’s game, LSU is tied for second in the SEC in stolen bases at 20, only one behind Vanderbilt. The Tigers’ four blunders on the year is among the lowest in the SEC, behind only South Carolina, Ole Miss and Alabama. Each of these teams has attempted to steal less bags than the Tigers.
The Tigers are currently in a groove, outscoring opponents 61-25 during their winning streak and are gaining confidence by the night, both in the batters box and on the base paths.
“Yeah [we think the odds are in our favor], and then they think about it too,” Foster said. “It’s in their mind that hey this guy might run we got to be quick.”
LSU’s turnaround since its debacle in the midweek against Nicholls State on Feb. 18 has been exponential, but it hasn’t come without studying and
preparation.
The Tigers worked hard with first year hitting coach Andy Cannizaro to become more aggressive on the basepaths, using their speed to make it easier for the lineup to drive in runs.
Ever since Cannizaro arrived, the Tigers have broken down every aspect of stealing the bases from the mental approach to the actual stolen bag. Junior outfielder Mark Laird said Cannizaro has taught him to always study the opponent and his approach in all situations.
“The way you steal most of your bases is in the dugout,” Laird said. “You just watch and make sure if someone gets on base see what the pitchers tendencies are, what he likes to do, what he likes to give, what kind of move he has. 
“I like to know what count they throw a breaking ball in because if they throw a breaking ball you don’t necessarily have to have your best to beat the throw because it’s slow to the plate. We come out here and practice a lot and try to be aggressive on the bases and it has paid off so far.”
Laird, who has five stolen bases this season, has been one of the most consistent base stealers for the Tigers in his career. Laird has stolen 16 bases in his past two seasons with the club, while also stealing 17 bags during the summer in the Cape Cod league.
Laird’s top of the lineup status for LSU in the past two seasons has become a habit because of his consistency in the batters box and his high baserunning IQ.
“You really just want to look at his whole front side in general like what moves first, does he pull his shoulder in to go to the plate and then how he’s throwing people,” Laird said. “Is he throwing backwards breaking balls first? Fastballs first? Coming right at them. It’s a lot of things you kind of have to look at, but coach Andy [Cannizaro] does a good job going ‘You see that? Look at that right there,’ so he has been helping us out in the dugout and at practice.”
The Tigers have created a reputation for fast baserunners with their lockdown outfield and quick handed infield, which has given opponents fits for a good part of the last few seasons for LSU both on offense and defense.
And when the opponent has been shaken, the Tigers will pounce.
“If you really think about, the pitcher has to make a good throw, catcher has to get up, good transfer, good throw, so it puts a lot of pressure on them when they’re up there too,” Foster said. “So when they have a team that knows how to run they’re going to be more out of whack. It’s good that we have that weapon this year and we’re taking advantage of it.”
You can reach Jack Chascin on Twitter @Chascin_TDR.