LSU baseball held a public team scrimmage last weekend, playing six innings in a defensive showcase at Alex Box Stadium. Previous Tigers came back to perform for the first time since LSU left for the College World Series, but some new faces have impressed so far during fall play.
Christian Little
Little returned for his senior season after being drafted in the 19th round last summer. After a difficult junior season, he has showcased some new fire in the scrimmages.
Little’s new look is led by the emergence of a new pitch in his arsenal: a cutter. At 87-90 mph, his cutter moves like a fastball and breaks like a slider, creating a deadly pitch for batters. Little can control his cutter to his liking, throwing it anywhere from 85-91 mph.
Little looks confident on the mound, feeling the dominance he couldn’t find last season. He remains a viable option for the Tigers as a starter, and his outlook at the rubber this season looks appetizing for LSU.
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Aiden Moffett
Seemingly unknown to LSU fans, Moffett is the next biggest closer for the Tigers. Sitting at 98 mph on his fastball, the strength and speed is evident for the Mississippi native. His high speed makes it difficult for batters to judge his pitches, and batters often swung at bad pitches due to his speed.
Problems arose in his ability to maintain control as the innings progressed. During the scrimmage, every strikeout Moffett tallied was accompanied by a walk, and although his fastball sits at a high speed, his difficulty controlling his pitches could hinder his performance.
Still, Moffett has emerged as a strong option for the Tigers in their loaded bullpen. His fastball is special, and towards the end of games, fans could see him take the mound as a prominent closer.
Ethan Frey
Another rising sophomore, Frey is breaking into the team with his versatility in the field. Leaving high school, Frey was the No. 1 ranked catcher in Louisiana, but with LSU’s depth behind the plate, he can help the Tigers elsewhere in the field.
Frey is listed at catcher, first base and outfield, making him valuable for LSU in case it gets into injury trouble. Alongside his dependability at the plate, Frey’s role this year is comparable to Paxton Kling last year, serving as outfield and offensive help.
Infield Struggles
Following the departure of Jordan Thompson and Gavin Dugas, LSU’s infield has a new look. With a couple of new freshmen in the infield rotation, a series of errors highlighted their performance on Friday.
Throughout the scrimmage, a majority of infield grounders were bobbled or missed. Errors were racking up between the infielders as the game progressed, showcasing a new instability on defense.
An error by Michael Braswell III on a routine double play summarized the overall performance of the infield, but it could be the result of new season nerves for the Tigers.
Outside of his error while at second, Braswell impressed with his performance at the plate, tallying a home run in the scrimmage on Friday. He added an RBI as well, proving his presence at the plate and his continuing offensive production.
Braswell played the rest of the scrimmage at shortstop, making an impressive backhand snag on a hard grounder through the shortstop-third base gap. He showcased his mental strength in the scrimmage, letting go of his previous error and performing well while at short.
