re: Start and pitch Skenes like normal tomorrow

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Eh it kind of is. You don’t want the reputation of running your guys into the ground. Soon there won’t be any guys wanting to play for you,

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I completely agree that Jay has to factor this in. It’s real. But I know that he not only wants to win a national championship, he wants to win a national championship with THIS team.

How does he balance those responsibilities out? If you think he can give you 40 pitches and you wait till the 8th or 9th, it may be too late. It could be 5-2 by then. Can you live with losing knowing the best pitcher in program history sat there on the bench with 40 pitches left in his arm? On the flip side, if you start Skenes with the plan of him giving you 50 pitches, and at pitch 50, it’s 0-0 after 4 and he is still pumping an easy 100 and says he feels great, can you take him out? I think the best thing for LSU is to start him and make sure you get whatever he’s got while you know the game still matters. But I think the best thing for Jay is to hold him so he doesn’t put himself in the position to even be tempted to go more than the plan.

Regardless, I don’t envy Jay, Paul, or anybody involved in that decision. Best case is Hurd starts and shoves long enough to let the bats eat and grab a 5-6 run lead, hand it to Cooper/Herring for a few, and then let Skenes finish the 9th blowing 100 straight up their donkeys to win the NC. Let’s see how real life plays out, though.