Now that pitcher Eric Walker is forced to sit the 2018 season due to Tommy John surgery, coach Paul Mainieri has lost all three of his starting pitchers from the 2017 season.
LSU announced in a press release on Friday that the rising sophomore tore the UCL in his right elbow, and his surgery is to be performed by Dr. Keith Meister, the head team physician of the Texas Rangers Major League Baseball club.
“Obviously, the news on Eric’s elbow is very disheartening,” Mainieri said in the statement. “First of all, my heart bleeds for Eric as this is not the conclusion to a wonderful freshman year that any of us envisioned. Eric was a rock all year in our weekend rotation and a vital contributor to our SEC Championship, as well as our appearance in the College World Series.”
Walker stayed steadfast for LSU on the backend of this season, and was named Freshman All-American and Freshman All-SEC.
His injury drastically changes the way Mainieri shapes his rotation for 2018. Walker was expected to combine with pitcher Caleb Gilbert to replace pitchers Alex Lange and Jared Poché.
Mainieri will now be forced to to find two new starters instead of one. One solution may be to reinsert rising sophomore pitcher Zack Hess, and remove him from his closer role, where he was dominant.
Mainieri could also turn to Todd Peterson, Matthew Beck or Nick Bush – all of whom are sophomores.
Another option is 6-foot-6-inch freshman Nick Storz of Poly Prep Country Day in Brooklyn. The hard-throwing righty was drafted in 31st round by the Detroit Tigers.
In May, Walker pitched a one-hit game against Auburn, struck out eight in a win in the Southeastern Conference Tournament championship against Arkansas, and shutout Rice in the Regional championship.
The outing against Rice would be the last successful appearance on the mound for Walker. In the final start of his freshman season, Walker removed himself from LSU’s first matchup with Oregon State due to forearm pain.
“Had Eric not become hurt, there is no telling how the finals of the CWS could have turned out,” Mainieri said. “He’s an outstanding young man with great leadership ability, and I have no doubt he will meet this challenge in his life as he does every other challenge. He will return to our team better than ever for the 2019 season.”
Walker started 17 games for the Tigers in 2017, posting an 8-2 record with a 3.48 ERA in 95.2 innings. He recorded 23 walks and 78 strikeouts and limited opponents to a .233 batting average.
