LSU baseball has caught a contagious set of viruses.
Injuries, poor bullpen performance and transfers not working out have all plagued the team this season, and it’s going to be the reason the team will most likely miss the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2011.
Ten of the 38 players on the roster have missed time with injuries, most of whom were supposed to be major contributors this year.
Cooper Moore was looking like the best starter on the staff until he made an early exit against Oklahoma last month due to injury. He was later announced to be out for the season.
Casan Evans was scratched from his start against Mississippi State on Friday. While head coach Jay Johnson said he is “A-OK,” his status for the weekend is still unsure. If Evans had been able to go this past weekend, LSU would most likely have taken at least one game in Starkville.
“Casan and Cooper missing an SEC weekend series on the road against a top-five team; you’re at a disadvantage,” Johnson said. “That’s the first time I’ve ever said that, but we’re at a disadvantage.”
The starting pitching injuries have placed more pressure on the bullpen, which blew leads in all three games this past weekend. It has become a trend that no lead is safe for LSU. Johnson said pitchers start getting exposed once they get stretched too thin.
While some pitchers like Danny Lachenmayer and Marcos Paz are starting to take a big step in their game, they can typically only control two to four innings of the game, which is when issues start to become more apparent.
Even though LSU scored eight runs in each game against Mississippi State, it still wasn’t enough to secure a win. Cooper Williams let up a grand slam in Saturday’s game. Deven Sheerin and Santiago Garcia were fantastic on Friday, but had to pitch on Sunday again, and each let up a few runs.
The injuries have taken over the offense as well. Though freshmen have stepped up to give LSU a fighting chance in many of these games, it’s all too late.
The outfield was heralded as the best returning group for LSU, but injuries have taken over for them. Jake Brown was the biggest loss for the offense, as he was having a season that would have given him a chance at snatching the Golden Spikes Award.
Chris Stanfield missed a month with a hand injury, has been taken out of games after crashing hard into walls, and is now sidelined with a hamstring injury. The hamstring is also hampering John Pearson, who was looking like a viable third base candidate.
Pearson started seeing time at third after junior transfer Trent Caraway had been playing poorly defensively and with his bat. He has not looked like the same player he did when he was at Oregon State and was named the most outstanding player of last year’s Corvallis Regional.
Zach Yorke has struck out, popped out at inopportune times and was benched. It’s another miss from the portal, and now the injury bug is getting to him after he hurt his foot Tuesday against Southeastern and had to leave the game.
Brayden Simpson has been affected by both injury and illness, losing power since last year at High Point. Last season, he hit 22 home runs in 58 games, but only one in 20 games played this year. He has also dealt with a hand injury that has forced him to miss time.
Garcia and Lachenmayer are really the only transfers who have worked out for LSU and have helped their case to take up even bigger roles next year.
Next season has been the focus for everyone. Even Johnson has said a lot of issues aren’t fixable for this year, but provide an easier transition into next.
It’s a unique situation for LSU baseball, as the end of April typically brings excitement for the postseason. This year, it’s bringing excitement for next February instead.
