Tigers sit at No. 11 in Baseball America poll
On Monday morning, the LSU baseball team received its lowest ranking of any preseason poll released thus far, but it is still one of the top four teams in the loaded Southeastern Conference, according to the new poll.
Baseball America placed the Tigers at No. 11 in its poll released Monday morning, which makes Paul Mainieri’s club the fourth-highest Southeastern Conference team. In total, seven SEC teams are ranked in the Baseball America’s top 25 and in-state rival UL-Lafayette is ranked No. 13.
Previously, LSU landed at No. 5 in the Perfect Game preseason poll and No. 7 in the D1Baseball.com and Collegiate Baseball preseason polls.
D1Baseball.com gives Lange, Fraley All-American nods
LSU sophomore pitcher Alex Lange and junior outfielder Jake Fraley have been named First and Third team preseason All-Americans, respectively, by D1Baseball.com, the website announced Monday morning.
The designation marks the third time Lange has been named a preseason First Team All-American, while it’s the second time Fraley has been give a Third Team All-American honor.
Lange will lead the Tigers starting rotation in 2016, coming off 12-0 season where he struck 131 batters and notched a 1.97 ERA. He was named National Freshman Pitcher of the Year by Collegiate Baseball and the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association.
Fraley is the only remaining position starter left from the 2015 team and will likely sit somewhere at the top of the Tigers’ batting order in 2016. As the primary left fielder last season, Fraley finished the season with a .307 batting average and 35 RBI. He also swiped 23 bases in 2016, which was good enough for sixth in the Southeastern Conference.
LSU basketball among “Last Four In” in Lunardi’s Bracketology
Though it had a rocky path to get to this point in the season, the LSU men’s basketball team is finding ways to win in the Southeastern Conference, and one national expert is taking notice.
On Monday morning, ESPN college basketball analyst Joe Lunardi placed the Tigers (12-7, 5-2 Southeastern Conference) in the “Last Four In” for his weekly Bracketology. LSU, which is currently in fourth place in the SEC, is one of five league teams that Lunardi projects to make the NCAA tournament if the season ended today.
As a team in the “Last Four In,” the Tigers would play Cincinnati as an No. 11 seed in one of the four opening round games, according to Lunardi.
One of Lunardi’s current No. 1 seeds is Oklahoma, which is currently the No. 1 team in the Associated Press poll and will face LSU on Saturday as part of the Big 12/SEC Challenge. It’s the tenth time the Tigers will play a No. 1 team in the AP poll’s history and the second year in a row they will host a No. 1 team.