Ma’Khail Hilliard is one of LSU’s smallest players sitting at 6-foot and 150 pounds, but the freshman right-handed pitcher has been the Tigers’ biggest surprise this season.
The LSU baseball team saw 17 players leave from last year’s College World Series team, opening the door for a new group of players to make their mark on the program.
Hilliard has taken advantage of his position this season, improving with each start. Hilliard started off the season in a bullpen role getting occasional action when the Tigers needed a middle reliever.
After a slew of shaky starts by Sunday’s sophomore right-handed pitcher Todd Peterson, the Tigers were in need of more stability. After LSU coach Alan Dunn told him to be more aggressive on the mound, LSU coach Paul Mainieri gave the starting role to Hilliard.
Hilliard left an impression on Mainieri after coming out the next week pitching loose and confident like Mainieri saw in the fall.
“Ma’Khail stepped up and changed his whole approach and started to attack the hitters,” Mainieri said.
The talk with Dunn has helped Hilliard tremendously as he currently leads the Southeastern Conference in WHIP, ERA and wins.
The 19-year-old freshman has been great for the Tigers this season, sitting with a record of 7-2 with a 1.75 ERA and a .98 WHIP.
Hilliard was first brought to LSU with the belief that he could be a relief pitcher and that couldn’t work deep into games because of his size. Despite his lengthy frame, Hilliard has proven that he doesn’t need a huge body to dominate the SEC.
“He can really whip it,” Mainieri said. “It’s really amazing how in pitching sometimes a guy can be really good even if he’s not a big 6-foot-3, 200 pound pitcher. It’s all how he pitches and movement.”
Hilliard’s fastball tops out around 86-87 mph never breaking the 90 mph threshold many pitchers aim to hit. The premier pitch in Hilliard’s arsenal is his 12-to-6 curve that fools hitters nearly every time he takes the mound.
With a spin rate on his curveball that mirrors MLB pitchers, Hilliard has been excellent in his role as a starter. The freshmen has the second most strikeouts on the team with 47 only trailing Friday night’s sophomore starting pitcher Zack Hess, who has 68.
“I’m very confident in my abilities,” Hilliard said. “And I feel like I have as much talent as anyone else on the team.”
As the season has progressed, Hilliard has shown steady improvement from week to week. After a few starts that did not go well, Saturday night’s starting right-handed pitcher Caleb Gilbert was sent to the bullpen.
Mainieri would not have to look far to find Gilbert’s replacement, penciling in his dominant freshman Sunday starter into a more prominent Saturday night role.
In his first start as a Saturday night pitcher, Hilliard threw for six innings giving up three and striking out six. The Saturday night win was the first for the Tigers since they defeated Vanderbilt on March 24th.
Hilliard has been known to do his best work with runners in scoring position, consistently shutting down the opposing team when runners are on second or third. Hilliard’s ability to lock in and throw his best stuff is what makes him such a special player moving forward in the LSU program.
“That extra focus that you gotta have in situations like that, you gotta execute pitches and get into good counts whenever you have two outs with a man on third or in scoring position,” Hilliard said. “You just gotta keep that focus and fill up the zone.”
As the season progresses, it’s easy for Tiger fans to wonder just how good LSU’s starting rotation could be next season. The return of Hess and Hilliard brings a formidable two way punch, but with the return of Eric Walker from Tommy John’s surgery next season, a freshman All-American from last year, the Tigers hope to have one of the best staffs in the entire SEC.
With five starts remaining for Hilliard, it will be key for him to continue to dominate in his Saturday role and give the Tigers the stability they have been searching for all year.
“I told the guys Ma’Khail has been pitching his heart out for us and we’re not giving him much run support,” Mainieri said. “I think we need to dedicate ourselves to give great support to him.”