Everything was going great for Cole Henry since his return from elbow soreness which kept him from pitching for over a month. The freshman pitcher came back in the Southeastern Conference Tournament and made his second appearance since his injury against Southern Miss in Baton Rouge Regional.
He was progressing and it looked like LSU had its ace back.
Then things went awry in game one of the Baton Super Regional against Florida State. Henry was done after two innings and 41 pitches.
LSU coach Paul Mainieri said it was “heartbreaking” to have to remove Henry, whose struggles were noticeable early. The freshman’s velocity was lower and his command seemed erratic, especially in the second inning when Henry walked the bases loaded.
“He told me after we took him out he started to feel some discomfort after the first inning,” Mainieri said. “I didn’t know that and I wouldn’t have expected it. He threw good in the first inning, and the second inning was a 30-pitch inning.
“When he came off I asked him how he felt, and he told me his arm was bothering him. I don’t anymore than that. The trainers are on top of it.
“I asked him how he was feeling and he told me ‘not too good.’ He pointed to his arm, and I’m not going to take anymore chances with the kid when he tells you that. There was no decision to be made. He had to come out of the game.”
Henry was replaced by junior Todd Peterson, who had a stellar outing over 4.1 innings, but LSU failed to hold its early 4-0 lead and fell 6-4 to Florida State.