With a top-5 national ranking and an illustrious history, the No. 4 LSU baseball team packs its home park on a regular basis – and repays the fans with more than just wins.
Long after LSU’s 4-3 win against Southeastern Louisiana last week – after the media already grilled him with questions about his transcendent season and after most of the team had already made their way into the clubhouse – junior outfielder Raph Rhymes stayed back and signed autographs.
He didn’t mind the wait. “Their kids have school in the morning, people have work, and for them to come out and show support for us, I think that’s huge,” Rhymes said. “I respect them for that.”
After he’d sated the crowd of kids screaming his name with baseballs in hand, Rhymes made his way over to chat with fans who stuck around for a chance to talk to the nation’s leading hitter.
The guy who is currently batting over .500 and is on pace to destroy the LSU batting record felt fine giving up an hour of his time to connect with anybody who wanted to.
“There’s not many years that a guy comes along like that who’s hitting .500 and is the type of guy Raph is,” said senior infielder Grant Dozar. “Sticking around for an hour after the game to talk to fans speaks about what kind of guy he is.”
But Rhymes isn’t the only Tiger to take his time to thank the fans for coming out to Alex Box. It’s a team effort, and it’s one that started a long time ago.
The LSU baseball team is well on its way to leading the NCAA in total attendance for the 17th consecutive year, a run that started in 1996 when the Tigers drew an average of 5,816 people per game in the old Alex Box Stadium.
While the program’s prior successes have definitely helped, the true connection between LSU and its fans can be seen after every game – win or lose, Southeastern Conference titan or midweek cream puff.
That’s when the Tigers identify with, relate to and meet those who come support them at the ballpark.
“We know a handful of fans personally,” Dozar said. “Those people are so loyal to come and support us day in, day out. We feel as a team that we owe something to those people.”
LSU coach Paul Mainieri said he wants his team to be active with the fan base and uses it to serve as a reminder of why they’re playing the game.
Every time the team walks past the locker room, they are greeted by a giant mural showing the 2009 College World Series championship team celebrating with the fans.
Mainieri said the support “separates LSU baseball from every other program in the country.”
The players might be encouraged to go out and interact with fans after the game, but they’re getting a nudge in a direction they were already headed.
“It’s easy to want to go up and learn their story or talk to them and introduce yourself because those people are out here every night rooting us on,” Dozar said.
 
—- Contact Luke Johnson at [email protected]