Jay has his finger precisely on the pulse of this pitching staff

He did it masterfully in the CWS last year. A true maestro.

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He did it masterfully in the CWS last year. A true maestro.

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1000% despite the frequent meltdowns here.

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Yeskie could be a difference maker

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If he brings that toothpick every game we gonna be TOUGH

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The meltdowns were for the regional opener, not for the way he

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The fact that you need to clarify it is pathetic enough.

it helps to have a great pitcher like Holman followed by a great pitcher like Ack followed by a great pitcher like Ulloa.

I do think Jay is an elite button pusher.

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He did it masterfully in the CWS last year. A true maestro

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I dunno. There's lots of guys on this board who could do it better...

At some point late in the season, when a regional and super are basically guaranteed, Jay will start to make some odd pitching decisions.

These decisions will be made to better evaluate who we need to use going in to the post season.

The Rant will melt down because we will drop a series.

But it will be part of the plan.

Jay did it last year and people thought we’d lose the regional because of this.

Jay recognizes that the only thing that matters is a top 8 seed. Then it’s just who’s hot and who’s not. But the rant wants to be undefeated.

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It was a bad move that thankfully didn’t bite us. It was literally the only questionable move he made with the staff all tournament, but still questionable nonetheless.

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What was the bad move?

Throwing Skenes to win game 1 and continue to set him up on schedule for the Supers? Get the hell out with this bullcrap.

Results > You and Matt Moscona's opinion.

Had he not thrown Skenes you don't guarantee winning game one. Not even against a terrible team. Had he thrown Skenes he would have been wasted in the 2nd game due to the weather delay crap.

There were many factors at play and he knows this team and what they need to win more than you, Broski.

Perhaps he also threw Skenes because he wanted to make sure he had the entire bullpen the rest of the way.

FWIW, I did not agree with his decision to throw Skenes game 1, but I also said I wasn't going to get mad unless we lost. I figured he had his reasons and clearly he did. And it all worked out perfectly.

You cannot say it was the wrong decision when it worked out. You can't. I don't care who you are. He made the correct decision for that team against those opponents.

In hindsight I was so glad he threw Skenes game 1, because he would have been lost early in game 2. Having the rest of your top arms for the delayed game was absolutely crucial. Especially given you lost one fairly early.

If Jay Johnson threw someone else in game one and they struggled he then has to use up his better relief arms to win that game. If he then had Skenes throw game 2 he would have been lost early on and you'd be out another one of your top arm options against Oregon St.

That regional could have gotten ugly had LSU somehow struggled to win game one. Skenes would have been lost in the 2nd or 3rd inning of game 2. And that would have been a MAJOR moral boost for Oregon St.

How about go win game 1 saving all your arms and keeping your team on schedule with confidence? How about setting the tone and not taking any opponent lightly at that point in the season? It was the right decision, because it worked. Period. There could be several other baseball factors for lining up the arms the way he did against the opponents they were facing. There's no justification in trying to say it was the wrong decision just because it was out of the norm for previous seasons.

I remember Mike Rooney saying LSU should throw Skenes against Tulane and disagreeing with that idea. Then when I saw Jay Johnson go against the norm I was surprised and figured there were reasons for it. It was always going to be a wait and see approach from me before I got mad at the decision. People were losing their minds over it. I am glad Jay Johnson is constantly evaluating his players and decisions. I rather that than continuing to stick to the norm.

I rather not imagine what would have happened had LSU struggled with Tulane. It doesn't matter how bad Tulane was. It's still baseball and pitching can always struggle any given game. Skenes completely set the tone for that game and for the team the rest of the way.

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Jay did it last year and people thought we’d lose the regional because of this

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NicolasTiger, Magician, and Pirate King do not represent "people."

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Smart people could disagree and neither really be wrong. That was the case that time.

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at that time it was a point of conversation....talking about it a year later is maniacal. Talking about it a year later, after the decision proved to be fine, and us winning a NC is idiotic.