LSU’s return to Omaha also marks the return for LSU’s young coaches.
Coach Paul Mainieri has put former Tigers Nolan Cain, Micah Gibbs and Sean Ochinko in key staff positions. All three were key parts on LSU’s 2009 National Championship team.
“You want to make it feel like it’s the same game,” said Ochinko. “You’re going to have a little bit of those nerves and anxious butterflies playing in front of all those people, but after you get the first inning over with, you realize it’s the same game.”
The coach had four hits, one of which was a home run, and three RBIs in Game 3 of the National Championship series against Texas.
Ochinko said he is extremely happy that the players are having the experience, but that they still have more to play for. His comments were echoed by Gibbs, who took over for Andy Cannizaro as the Tigers’ hitting coach this fall.
“The big thing is it’s the same game,” Gibbs, who started at catcher for all three games against Texas, said. “With such a veteran team, they’re older guys and this is what they came back for. I think they are going to have plenty of motivation once we get there.”
While the Tigers do have a veteran team, only eight players on the current roster who played in the 2015 College World Series, and seven of those eight players are pitchers. The lone position player was catcher Michael Papierski, who caught one inning and did not see an at bat.
Of the seven pitchers, only junior Alex Lange and seniors Jared Poche and Hunter Newman have seen extensive time this year. Seniors Collin Strall and Russell Reynolds and juniors Austin Bain and Doug Norman have all been passed up in the rotation.
Many of LSU’s top players were not on the team in 2015, or in some cases, like senior Kramer Robertson and junior Greg Deichmann, left off of the traveling roster due to poor performance or injury.
For Lange, the message to the team is simple.
“It’s just another game of baseball,” said Lange, who was credited with LSU’s one win in Omaha in 2015. “This team has shown what it takes week in, week out on how to win championships. It’s been really fun, and we are going to out there and do the same thing.”
Poche was drafted by the San Diego Padres in the 2016 MLB draft, but decided along with Deichmann, Robertson and senior Cole Freeman to all come back with one goal in mind.
Omaha.
“A lot of people said it was Omaha or bust,” Poche said, “But it really was. We are playing our best baseball now.”
The Tigers are indeed playing some of the country’s best baseball, but to avoid similar fates of past LSU teams to make it to Omaha, they’ll have to rely upon the experiences of their coaches.
“It is a good thing that the coaching staff has been there before, and has that experience to let the guys know when to focus on certain things and when to enjoy Omaha,” Gibbs said.
Gibbs came under fire from fans along with Mainieri during the team’s midseason struggles, but has been big reason for helping turn LSU into one of the best hitting teams in the NCAA this season.
“It’s awesome. It’s a testament to the kids, they’re relentless and just keep going and going,” Gibbs said regarding LSU’s current run of form.
Mainieri defended his assistant coaches in his press conference after winning the Super Regional against Mississippi State.
“Everybody thought I was surrounding myself with yes-men, and that they were not qualified to coach here because they hadn’t done whatever,” Mainieri said. “These players will tell you how qualified these coaches are.”
“When our players talk to Sean Ochinko, Micah Gibbs, or Nolan Cain, they all have one thing these players do not, and that is a national championship ring. They know what it takes.”
