LSU’s Skenes amazes coaches
Paul Skenes put up numbers impressive enough last season to earn Mountain West Conference co-pitcher of the year and some All-America honors.
So far this season, he’s the most dominant pitcher in the country and doing it under the hot spotlight of LSU and the Southeastern Conference.
After throwing 6 1/3 scoreless innings in a 9-0 win over Texas A&M on Friday, the big right-hander has won all five of his starts and has a nation-leading 59 strikeouts against four walks in 30 1/3 innings.
His 0.53 walks and hits per innings pitched is best in the nation, his 17.51 strikeouts per nine innings rank second, and opposing hitters are batting just .115 against him.
“He could do it against a major league lineup right now and I believe that,” LSU coach Jay Johnson said.
Skenes grew up in Lake Forest, California, and three of his uncles served in the armed forces. He initially wanted to do the same, but he said before the season that he changed his mind last year and wanted to pursue a professional baseball career.
Skenes was drawn to LSU so he could be tutored by Wes Johnson, the former Minnesota Twins pitching coach who left at midseason last year to take the same job at LSU.
Texas A&M coach Jim Schlossnagle said Skenes ranks with Stephen Strasburg and Mark Prior as the best college pitchers he’s seen in his 33 years in coaching.
“It’s one thing to throw 98-100 mph, but this guy is big and tall and loose, and he’s got some life to his fastball,” Schlossnagle told reporters. “He threw a couple decent change-ups. He’s a real pitcher. He’s pitching in the wrong league, I’ll tell you that. He needs to be in the American or National League.”
IN THE POLLS
LSU (18-2) stayed No. 1 in the polls after winning two of three on the road against Texas A&M.
D1Baseball.com ranks Wake Forest (18-3) and Florida (18-4) second and third. Florida is No. 2 and Louisville (17-2) is No. 3, according to Baseball America.Collegiate Baseball newspaper ranks Louisville second and Arkansas (18-2) third.
MIGHTY MIZZOU
Missouri produced the biggest surprise of the weekend, sweeping three games from Tennessee and outscoring the Volunteers 23-6 in the process. The Vols had been swept only once in SEC play since the start of the 2022 season.
Chandler Murphy and Rorik Maltrud combined on a three-hitter with 10 strikeouts in Friday’s 9-1 win. The teams played two seveninning games Sunday, and Austin Troesser and two relievers combined on a one-hitter with 12 strikeouts in a 7-1 win in the finale.