I know, it's too early for some of you to get excited about baseball, and others probably never do, but I liked today's article in the Advocate about LSU baseball. No earthshaking news in the piece but I do like Coach Mainieri's reported plan to build from pitching. For all the years of fun that built up to and became Gorilla Ball, many of the unwashed fail to recall that the Skipper developed quite a number of excellent college pitchers during his glory years that were largely responsible for the "dynasty." Smith, Parker, McDonald, Springer, Byrd, Ogea, Thompson, Coogan, Ainsworth, Shipp, Tallet, Kiesler, Esteves, and so many more I fail to recall at the moment, were effective and so much fun to watch. I'm hoping Coach Paul has some success in both recruiting and developing the guys on the hill. Good pitching wins.
I'm fired up. It will be nice to see some new strategies. I hope Maneri can build a good program. It would be nice to get back to the top.
I think he's going to be very successful at LSU. And when I say successful at LSU I mean win some championships. We may not have the pitching this year, we'll see.
I love me some baseball (much more MLB than college) but definitely agree with having strong starting pitching to dominate. That's where it all begins and ends. But then again I love a 3-2 game much more than a 11-10 game.
Notables I omitted ? (hell, it's a slow day, I'm iced in, I may run outta beer before the big thaw....help me out here tirk)
been tryin to remember a few you left off. my fave is scotty schultz for some reason. wicked curveball and was dominant but no one ever remembers him. sirotka was as fierce a competitor on the mound you'll ever meet (except for ogea) but the nicest guy ever. I was surprised he made the rotation for the pale hose initially because i thought he was all heart over talent but them lefties is crafty. barry manuel, leskanic, guthrie and springer were pretty much the foundation that began the bertman era. mcdonald goes without saying. yarnall and ainsworth were super talented. and no LSU list of pitchers is complete without mr laxton. i scratched rick greene from my all-time list once i saw he was an LSU pimp. brian tallet was one of my favorites as was trey hodges.
Manuel, Leskanic, Guthrie...don't know how I left them off...all major leaguers. Big time college players. The thing I remember about Manuel is how strong his legs were. That guy got a push off the mound that few do. Leskanic, the guy was a battler with bad stuff and when on, well, he was on and the game was his. Guthrie, made a better big league career than any LSU pitcher I can remember without amazing talent. Seemed to surface every year, just when you thought he was through. You remember than leather string that hung from his glove when he pitched for the Tigers ? Kinda caught on with several of the pitchers.
no but I remember mcdonalds which was very noticeable. I didnt realize that manuel had done it before him. Ill assume thats where that came from. I remember some coaches had the ump tell him to shorten it in hopes to disrupt his rhythm. never really worked. big ben always had blister problems moreso than the avg pitcher but i was shocked the #1 pick overall was an average pitcher. even before his injuries. that fastball never had any movement it seemed and was constantly yakked out the yard. everything ive heard on mainieri since hes been here is that these guys are going to be in shape. he wont blow their arms out but he will run their asses off. adrian antonini wouldnt make it.
