The extent of the damage: C- Brandon Snyder (#13-Rd 1 to Orioles) LHP- Beau Jones (#41- Rd Compensatory A to Braves) RHP- Josh Wall (#74-Rd 2 to Dodgers) RHP- Jeremy Hellickson (#118-Rd 4 to Devil Rays) CF- Jarred Bogany (#451-Rd 15 to Pirates) C- Robert Lara (#525 Rd 17 to Twins) Maybe Hellickson pulls a Zeringue and comes to LSU if he doesn't get the money he wants. Rummel had a catcher drafted right around Lara, I wonder if we were recruiting him... Here is an article on Jason Ogata from Oregon who signed with LSU and is a highly regarded SS who might be able to step in next year and play. He wanted to come to LSU unless he was a 1st rounder, so that's why he fell in the draft. http://www.portlandtribune.com/archview.cgi?id=29215
Awesome article. Man I'm excited to get this guy! Finally! Some GOOD news for the day! I'm gonna go out on a limb and say Lara and Bogany end up at LSU as well. That's would be quite a recruiting class.
No doubt if that happens Turtle and Smoke can thank their lucky stars. Definitely makes next years outlook brighter.
Just my $.02...."I don't ever remember being in this kind of position where you can lose a third of your team over two days of the draft. Not even with all we did when I was an assistant at LSU. So that tells you right there the kind of players these guys are and the kind of program we've been able to establish here at Ole Miss." MIKE BIANCO------Thanks for training him so well guys....We 'preciate it. Hard to believe that the STATE of La. had three high school players drafted before the first from LSU. Smoke better get off his duff and recruit BIG TIME.
Congrats to Ole Miss and Bianco who had five players taken in the first 5 rounds including utility player Head in the 2nd round. Only Patterson went in the top 5 in the 4th round. Bianco must be doing something right.
I said it yesterday that Turtle better have a GREAT backup plan because he does this crap every year, recruits the top players in the country and everyone raves about it - then those players get drafted, sign a contract and never sniff Alex Box Stadium. It does nothing for LSU when you sign these kids who you know will never step in the batter's box or take the hill of Alex Box. Then you're left to pick over the scraps and leftovers. Well here's Turtle's great contingency plan as quoted in today's Advocate : "All you can do is get back on the road and try to find somebody who maybe is a late developer or try to find a transfer," he said. "There might be a guy out there who signed with a junior college but is ready for a higher level." Now there's a contingency plan to build a program around! Carl Dubois' column in the Advocate today says exactly what I've been saying about the status of LSU baseball right now. Here's some excerpts that I absolutely agree with: That said, Laval and Athletic Director Skip Bertman have much to ponder this summer. LSU needs to reevaluate its recruiting plan. Having the No. 1 signing class in the country means nothing if you lose a handful of A-level players to the draft every year. LSU needs to figure out why it tied for ninth in the Southeastern Conference in number of players drafted last year, and why so many players from other SEC schools were chosen earlier than LSU players Tuesday. The Tigers had one player drafted in the first five rounds. Ole Miss had five. LSU needs to look at its pitching philosophy. Some teams figured out LSU's tendencies and pitch sequences and knew when to expect the right pitch to drive. Laval needs to figure out why some pitchers haven't improved, and why some got worse. He needs to look at how many pitchers LSU signs with arm or shoulder problems and ask himself if they are worth the risk. Laval needs to solve the puzzle of why so few players in the last two recruiting classes made significant contributions this year, and why Rice could win a super regional at Alex Box Stadium with so many freshmen playing key roles. Smoke better do some big time reevaluating because the program is somewhat at a crossroads if you will.
well its official. smoke is a great, overachieving coach. the fact we won the west with hardly any top talent solidifies that. one pitcher and 2 position players taken in the first 10 rounds yet we compete with the best of the best. now if he could only get some true talent the sky's the limit!!!!
