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 Bob DelGiorno &Monica Pierre
6am-10am
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Posted: Thursday, 15 May 2008 11:25AM
LSU Baseball on the Verge of Winning the SEC West
Jeff Palermo Reporting
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Back on April 20th, the Tigers were 6-11-1 in the Southeastern Conference and had just blown a seven-run lead to Georgia, which resulted in a 10-10 tie. Many in Tiger Town were questioning whether Athletics Director Skip Bertman made the right decision by hiring Paul Mainieri.
But since that day LSU has won 13 in a row, moved back into the Top 25 polls for the first time in over two years and they enter the final regular season series of the year with a chance at winning the SEC West. The Tigers magic number two as they begin play tonight against Auburn.
As with anything in baseball it starts with pitching. The Tigers rank third in the SEC with a 3.90 ERA. Coming into this season, Jared Bradford was the one guy you can count on. But left-handers Blake Martin and Ryan Verdugo have settled in as weekend starters. Louis Coleman and Daniel Bradshaw have become excellent pitchers out of the pen, and Bradford leads the team with nine victories.
Offensively, the Tigers have averaged nine runs a game during this stretch. Derek Helenihi has been a solid hitter in the middle of the order, averaging .332, but its been Blake Dean and Matt Clark providing the power and driving in the runs. The two have combined to hit 30 home runs and 87 RBIs. Freshman catcher Micah Gibbs has shown the most improvement during the season. He's hitting .356 with 1 home run and 18 RBIs in SEC play.
LSU has also played solid defense, only committing 11 errors during the 13-game winning streak.
But the most impressive thing about this streak is LSU's ability to keep coming back. LSU has railled from a deficit in 10 of its last 13 games and have won in their last at-bat four times.
LSU's hot streak has put them in position to host an NCAA regional, a thought that seemed impossible on April 20th. According to Boydswold.com, which is considered a college baseball authority, LSU ranks 17th in the RPI. 16 teams will get to host a regional, and Baseball America says LSU has emerged as a near lock to host.
So maybe Skip Bertman has hit a home run with his hire. Mainieri has shown what Bertman did for years, play your best baseball in May and June. May has been a good month and Tiger fans hope there's a long June.
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