LSU Baseball Mid Season Progress Report (Hitting Only)

A couple of thoughts I put together...feel free to add your own.

SEC Games ONLY (Rank in Conference 1-14)

Hitting

Avg - 10th
Slugging - 9th
OBP% -10th
Runs - 13th
Hits - 10th
RBI's - 13th
Doubles -10th
HR's - 7th
Walks - 9th
HBP - 10th
K's - 5th
Sac bunts - 8th
Sac Flies - 9th
Stolen Bases - 13th
GIDP - 1st

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-It was evident during fall and spring practice that this team was going to struggle to manufacture runs at times with their lack of speed and high k rates so the group below needed to get on base with some sort of consistency.

-Milam, Braswell, Bingham, and Kling were thought to be the only "real threats" on the base paths in the everyday lineup...combined they are 1-3, in conference play which is terrible considering the slugging percentages outside of Bingham.

-LSU doesn't sacrifice bunt (well they try) but they mostly end up as fielders choices.

-Because LSU can't move runners over they are almost last in the SEC in sacrifice flys at (2).

-And then we get to grounded into double plays where LSU leads the conference by a pretty large margin (4).

-Coupled with the fact that LSU doesn't hit well with runners in scoring positions we see why LSU has only scored in four innings twice this year in conference play.

-4.333 runs is how much LSU is averaging a game in conference play.

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Two games which have crushed LSU's season

6-4 Florida (LSU leads 4-2 in the top of the 6th inning and goes scoreless over the last 6 innings and leaves 5 LOB)

8-6 Vanderbilt (LSU leads 6-5 in the top of the 7th inning and goes scoreless over the last 3 innings and leaves 2 LOB)

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Homes games - LSU is averaging 5.167 runs
Away games - LSU is averaging 4.222 runs

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Jared Jones was taken out of LSU's lineup almost exactly a year ago with somewhat similar stats as he has right now...this year he's regarded as one of LSU's top 3 hitters.

Ashton Larson and Steven Milam are both holding up their own at the plate, playing good defense, and hustling so I'd be all for letting them play out the rest of the year and get experience.

It's low hanging fruit but the lack of progression between Neal (3 hits) and Kling (3 hits) has absolutely killed LSU in conference play. Johnson is in a tricky spot because if he sits them too soon with this day in age they'll become transfer candidates but at the same time he's wanting to give them every opportunity to find something. Both are pull happy and seeing them jump out of their shoes week after week without tweaks to their approach has been disheartening.

Travinski looks like he's simply going through the motions.