With a new season at hand, LSU looks to paint a successful picture in 2016
By its pure nature, baseball is a game of regeneration.
LSU coach Paul Mainieri constantly emphasizes that to his players with a midnight memory mantra: Once both hands of the clock reach the top, it’s time to move on to the next one.
So the idea of starting a season with a blank canvas just seemsright. And the 2016 canvas at LSU is a unique mosaic.
Half of it has a few lines drawn on it, only one in permanent ink: The offensive lineup.
The other half is pretty much a finished product, all the colors where they need to be and set and only some touchup and polishing needed: The pitching staff.
How well Mainieri and his coaching staff blend the two halves will be the ongoing story of how the 2016 season unfolds.
Step one is this weekend when the No. 5/7-ranked Tigers entertain Cincinnati in a three-game series that gets underway at 7 p.m. Friday at Alex Box Stadium.
LSU is mix of veteran pitchers and first-time full-time starters around the diamond. Only Jake Fraley, a two-year starter in left field, and Kramer Robertson return as tested veterans.
Those two juniors will be surrounded by seven players who were either relegated to reserve duty or weren’t on campus at the end of last season. The opening-night lineup features the two junior returnees, two freshmen, four sophomores and a junior-college transfer.
The roster includes only two seniors – transfer John Valek, who will get the Game 3 start and little-used southpaw reliever Hunter Devall. Three other freshmen position players could get innings early, as well as 2-3 additional JUCO newcomers.
Head spinning yet?
“This is certainly something new to me and one of the more challenging offseasons I can remember in my 34 years as a coach,” Mainieri said. “But it’s also been invigorating and a lot of fun. I love these kids. They’re wonderful young men. They’re listening and trying their best every day to get better.”
There is a lot of that already accomplished within a pitching staff that lost only four arms, two that contributed much in a 56-12 SEC championship and College World Series season.
After posting a 12-0 record with a 1.97 ERA as a freshman, Alex Lange is back as the ace of the LSU pitching staff.As shuffled as the offensive cupboard is, the pitching staff is as deep and talented as any in Mainieri’s tenure, led at the front by the 1-2 punch of Alex Lange and Jared Poche.
Fifth-year coach Alan Dunnhas more talent to work with than ever before and that makes the pitching staff the strength of a team that was predicted to finish second in the SEC West this week.
“There is a lot of comfort and confidence in who we have back on our staff,” Mainieri said. “We may need to lean on those guys early in the season while some of our position guys gain some experience.”
A lot of that has been piled up in scrimmage work and intra-squad games.
Nothing can totally prepare a crew of new and relatively new starters for the pressure of SEC baseball, though.
“We’re about as ready as we can be to start the season,” Mainieri said. “Sooner or later these young kids, these inexperienced kids, need to take the plunge. Let’s turn the bright lights on and see what they’re made of.”
That fortitude test run will be especially interesting to watch for freshmenAntoine Duplantis and Trey Dawson as they take the first baby step of their careers — although Dawson’s debut may be delayed by a case of pink eye. If Dawson can’t go, Mainieri might replace him with another rookie: Chris Reid orO’Neal Lochridge.
The four sophomores who are slated to start are Mike Papierskibehind the plate, Greg Deichmann at first base, Beau Jordan in left field and Bryce Jordan at DH. Papierski saw the most extensive action of that quartet last season, while Deichmann will make his first start after collecting only eight at-bats in an injury-marred freshman campaign.
Cole Freeman rounds out the starting nine, either at third base or shortstop if Dawson is unable to go.
Mainieri mixes players in early and often once the season begins, so it’s likely thatBrennan Breaux and Brody Wofford will join their freshmen teammates on the diamond. Brother Martin and Delgado College product Cody Ducote also figures to factor in once he recovers from hand surgery and returns to action in March.
“We need to see what we have,” Mainieri said. “I’m expecting us to have some success, but I’m also fully prepared that there will be some rough times with as many inexperienced guys as we need to count on. The goal is to find out as much as we can about our team the first few weeks and be ready for when Alabama comes here for the first weekend of SEC play (March 18-20).”
While the less-tested test the waters, Robertson and especially Fraley figure to emerge as leaders.
When he spoke about Robertson, who has started the last two seasons at second but lost the job both times to older players who were more productive offensively, Mainieri said the junior has been one of the Tigers’ most consistent hitters in pre-season work.
Robertson showed some gritty toughness earlier in the week when he took a wicked ground ball to the mouth that opened up a nasty cut. Fitted with a special mouth guard, Robertson will be on the diamond for the first pitch Friday.
With a new season at hand, LSU looks to paint a successful picture in 2016
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