With four pitchers nursing injuries, LSU coach Smoke Laval had an ultimatum for right-hander Edgar Ramirez when he arrived at the ballpark Sunday morning.
“I told him when he came in, ‘You’re going to be the first one in, and we’re going to ride your back until the eighth,'” Laval said.
The senior responded to the challenge, scattering four hits and 1 run in 4 and 1/3 innings and keeping the Tigers in the game long enough to outlast Arkansas, 7-5, in front of 2,473 fans in Alex Box Stadium.
Ramirez tried to close out the game in the ninth, but walked ninth-place hitter Matt Willard to lead off the inning. Third baseman Will Harris then came on in relief and recorded two strikeouts to earn the save for LSU, which improved to 8-13 in the Southeastern Conference.
Ramirez improved to 2-0 on the season, and Harris earned his first career save for the Tigers, who won two out of three games against Arkansas this weekend.
“It feels good to get a chance to help out the team,” said Ramirez, who entered the game with a 7.20 ERA. “We knew we had to go in there and go as long as we could, especially with the pitching staff being as short as it is. There was a little bit of pressure, but that’s what we’re here for.”
Locked in a 5-5 tie in the seventh, Quinn Stewart ended up at second base after Willard overthrew first baseman Danny Hamblin on a routine ground ball. The Tigers capitalized on the miscue one batter later, when Matt Liuzza drove in Stewart with an RBI-single to give LSU the lead, 6-5.
LSU increased its lead to 7-5 in the eighth when Michael Hollander singled home Harris, who led off the inning with a double.
Liuzza said Ramirez’s ability to locate his fastball was the key to his success.
“In college, if you can get two pitches over the plate for strikes, you’ll be successful,” Liuzza said. “When his fastball is at the knees, that’s all he needs. It’s got a lot of late life to it, and when he keeps it down, it’s hard to hit.”
With Sunday starter Derik Olvey and relievers Michael Bonura, Darryl Shaffer and Chase Dardar experiencing arm pain, the Tigers benefitted from two lengthy performances by starters Clay Dirks and Louis Coleman on Friday and Saturday.
Dirks lasted 7 and 2/3 innings in the Tigers’ 7-6 win on Friday, and Coleman pitched 7 and 2/3 innings in Saturday’s 4-2 loss.
LSU won Friday’s game in dramatic fashion. After Arkansas rallied to tie the game at 6-6 in the top of the ninth, Hollander hit a walk-off solo home run down the left field line to end the Tigers’ four-game SEC-losing streak. Reliever Jonathan Wilhite (1-0) earned the win for LSU.
Leading 2-1 in the eighth on Saturday, Arkansas tied the game on an RBI single by David Hum. The Razorbacks added two more runs in the ninth to go ahead, 4-2.
 
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