Two days before the No. 8 Tigers begin their quest to make it back to postseason play, junior outfielder/first baseman Mason Katz and senior third baseman Tyler Hanover were antsy.
Three and a half hours before their scheduled 3 p.m. practice Wednesday, the two seasoned players were already in Alex Box Stadium getting early batting practice and fielding ground balls.
Needless to say, the 2012 Tigers are ready for some baseball.
“It’s competition for who gets here first and who gets the most swings in before practice,” Hanover said of his and Katz’s early arrival. “Mason and I are always here pretty again.”
Standing in their way are the Air Force Academy and Alcorn State. The Tigers will split a three-game series with the two in what is being billed as a mini-tournament.
LSU will sandwich a Saturday evening game against Alcorn State with Friday night and Sunday afternoon contests against Air Force.
Alcorn State and Air Force will also face each other in two games at 11 a.m. Friday and Saturday, which are free to the public.
LSU coach Paul Mainieri has a history with Air Force. It was his second job as a head coach, and he was the first civilian coach at the service academy.
Mainieri has expressed on numerous occasions a profound respect for the men and women who have served in the military, and has relayed that message to his team.
“He gives us a few stories about when he used to coach at the Air Force Academy,” Hanover said. “It’s going to be a great honor to be playing the guys that are going to be serving our country later on. Those are the true