With six fellow Southeastern Conference opponents ranked within D1Baseball.com’s Top 25, LSU has a rough road ahead in the latter half of the 2017 season.
LSU has begun the season 4-2 in conference play, sweeping the Georgia Bulldogs but going 1-2 in last weekend’s series against the Florida Gators, rallying in the last game to win 10-6.
The Tigers still have SEC challengers, including Arkansas, Ole Miss, Kentucky and South Carolina, remaining in regular season play. Here are The Daily Reveille’s picks for the SEC’s top 10 teams:
1. Florida (17-9, 2-4)
Florida’s pitchers showed what they’re capable of against LSU. Sophomore pitcher Alex Faedo stalled the Tigers’ offense in his seventh inning start on the mound without giving up a single run and recording seven strikeouts. The Gators would have completed a sweep of the Tigers if it wasn’t for a late six-run rally by LSU in the eighth inning of the final game.
2. LSU (18-8, 4-2)
With the duo of junior pitcher Alex Lange and senior pitcher Jared Poche on the mound, and the bats that make up the LSU lineup, it’s hard to count the Tigers out following a series loss to Florida. Eight of nine starters in LSU’s lineup are hitting .298 or better, and senior right fielder Greg Deichmann is one of three SEC leaders in home runs with eight.
3. Auburn (21-6, 5-1)
Auburn began conference play with arguably the best start in the SEC with a sweep of the Florida Gators, including an emphatic 14-3 opening victory. Junior pitcher Keegan Thompson has the second best ERA in the conference of 0.70, giving up only three earned runs in six starts.
4. South Carolina (18-6, 5-1)
Following a sweep of Tennessee and a series victory over Alabama, the Gamecocks have gotten off to a strong start in conference play. Junior pitcher Clarke Schmidt has an ERA of 1.12 in five starts, and junior infielder Matt Williams leads the team in batting average, going .358 at the plate.
5. Kentucky (19-7, 5-1)
The Wildcats are coming off of a series victory over Ole Miss and a sweep of Texas A&M. Unranked to begin the season, Kentucky has taken many by surprise. Sophomore infielder Luke Becker and senior outfielder Zach Reks have taken control of the Wildcats’ lineup, batting .373 and .371 respectively.
6. Arkansas (20-5, 5-1)
Arkansas swept Mississippi State and went on the road to take a series over the previously ranked No. 24 Missouri Tigers to start conference play. The Razorbacks have four batters in their lineup with a batting average above .316.
7. Ole Miss (16-9, 3-3)
The Rebels are still waiting for their bats to get warm. Not a single batter in the Ole Miss lineup is batting above .286. Ole Miss went 2-1 against Vanderbilt before going on the road to drop a series to Kentucky.
8. Missouri (21-4, 4-2)
After beginning the season with a 6-2 loss to Eastern Michigan, the Tigers went on a 20-game winning streak, which included a sweep of Alabama, before losing to Arkansas on March 24. However, the Tigers have one of the biggest weapons in the conference: In-relief pitcher TJ Sikkema has a 5-0 record in 32 and one-third innings and has pitched with 49 strikeouts.
9. Mississippi State (16-10, 3-3)
The Bulldogs have the SEC’s top two leaders in batting average, Brent Rooker and Jake Mangum, batting .427 and .407 respectively. After getting swept by Arkansas on the road, Mississippi State turned things around with a sweep of Tennessee.
10. Vanderbilt (17-9, 3-3)
The Commodores have two aces that have led them thus far on the mound. Patrick Raby and Drake Fellows currently sit within the top 10 ERAs of the SEC. Vanderbilt began conference play with a series loss to Ole Miss, but responded by going 2-1 against Texas A&M. The Commodores are known as a consistent force within the SEC East.
