LSU baseball coach Paul Mainieri had a decision to make at catcher this season for the first time since former Tiger Micah Gibbs was a freshman in 2008.
One newcomer would have to fill the shoes of Gibbs, a member of the 2009 Southeastern Conference All-Defensive Team who hit .322 his freshman year, .294 his sophomore year and .388 his junior year.
After junior college transfer catcher Jordy Snikeris pulled his groin in the fall, it became clear the post-Gibbs era would involve freshman catcher Ty Ross.
Three weeks into the season, Ross has solidified the starting role.
“There’s no question that he’s our No. 1 guy, primarily because he throws better than Jordy,” Mainieri said. “But Jordy’s a very pesky and good player, too.”
Snikeris returned to full health after Christmas break, but Ross had been catching the majority of the fall by that point.
“Coach Mainieri’s pretty specific about groin injuries,”
Snikeris said. “He wanted to make sure I was 100 percent when I got back. It was just awful timing because it was right when we first started team practices and intersquads.”
Both catchers have more than 15 at-bats, but neither has broken out at the plate. Snikeris is hitting .211 (4-for-19) after going 0-for-3 with a run scored Sunday.
Ross carried a dismal .185 batting average (7-for-32) into the Cal State Fullerton series but caught fire Saturday. He pulled his average up to .219 with two hits, including a single in the eighth inning which started the eventual winning rally.
“This is kind of what he did in the fall,” Mainieri said. “The more he played, the better he started swinging. We’re starting to see him do that now.”
Freshman pitcher Kevin Gausman said Ross’ defensive prowess makes up for any offensive woes. His .988 fielding percentage is third best among starters.
“He got me probably 10 to 15 strikes [Saturday] that weren’t strikes,” Gausman said. “He really works hard back there. He’s coming into that role kind of being like Micah last year.”
The Tigers have soared despite the rawness behind the plate. LSU is 11-0 when Ross starts and 4-1 with Snikeris catching.
“Regardless of who’s back there, we’re going to do a good job,” Ross said. “I definitely am more comfortable now playing in front of 10,000 people.”
A rotation of inexperienced catchers is nothing new for Mainieri and the Tigers.
Gibbs started 67 games at catcher as a sophomore in 2009. As a freshman he only started 48 games, while former catcher Sean Ochinko started 21.
Mainieri said he still plans on resting Ross sporadically for the remainder of the season.
“Jordy’s going to continue to be a very important player for us because Ross can’t catch every game,” Mainieri said. “It’s just too demanding a position physically. You have to have another catcher ready.”
Snikeris said he’s comfortable in the role he’s in. He started Sunday’s game, was inserted late into Friday’s 7-6 win and has played in 11 of the Tigers’ 16 games.
“We’re both getting opportunities in key points and times that can help us win games,” Snikeris said.
Follow Rowan Kavner on Twitter @TDR_Kavner.
 
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