Looking Back at Kentucky Baseball's Series With LSU Earlier This Season

The Bat ‘Cats are back in the NCAA Tournament Super Regionals for the first time 2017. Standing in their way on the path to Omaha? The LSU Tigers, which won the season series 2-1 against Kentucky back in mid-April. Of the 16 teams left standing in the Super Regionals, six hail from the SEC, with four of them facing off against each other this week (UK-LSU and Florida-South Carolina).

LSU pounced on Kentucky in game one of the series on Friday, April 13 in Baton Rouge, jumping out to a 14-1 lead through just three innings thanks to grand slams from Jordan Thompson and Brayden Jobert. The Bat ‘Cats didn’t give up though, as they actually outscored the Tigers 5-2 over the final five innings. The momentum from those final few innings carried over to Saturday’s matchup, as Kentucky rode great offensive performances from Jackson Gray, Émilien Pitre and Chase Stanke to a 13-10 win over the then-number-one ranked team in the country.

Sunday’s grudge would end up being one of the best SEC games of the entire season, a back-and-forth thriller that came down to the very end. With the bases loaded, Kentucky’s Zack Lee plunked Tommy White to bring home the game-winning run for the Tigers. Many believed that the ‘Cats had no chance of going to Baton Rouge and coming away with a series victory, but they were just one or two plays away from a series victory on the road against the number one team in the country.

If you were to describe this Wildcat team in just one word, that word would be “Unafraid.”

Émilien Pitre and Jackson Gray Led the Way

Second Team All-SEC Selection Émilien Pitre enjoyed one of his best series of the entire season in Baton Rouge earlier this year. Pitre went 7-12 from the plate, good for a .583 average on the weekend. Along with some clutch hits (like his insurance RBI single in the ninth inning of Kentucky’s 13-10 win), Petey drove in five RBI and scored four runs.

Jackson Gray was extremely effective as well, going 5-12 with a RBI and six runs scored. But everyone else had a rough go of things against one of the best pitching staffs in the nation. Lexington Regional Most Outstanding Player Devin Burkes was right in the midst of his midseason slump, going just 3-13 with a RBI and three runs scored.

Kentucky’s pitching staff didn’t enjoy much success while Pitre, Gray, and a few other offensive UK players did. Nick Mingione’s ace Zack Lee pitched 1.1 innings in the weekend, giving up four hits and three earned runs in that short span. Seven different Wildcat pitchers gave up two-plus earned runs on the weekend.

However, Lexington Regional standout Mason Moore continued to build on his phenomenal sophomore season, pitching 2.2 innings, giving up just one hit and two earned runs. LSU and Kentucky were two of the best offensive teams in the SEC this season, so the Super Regional will come down to how many runs each offense can put up (groundbreaking analysis, I know). During Kentucky’s lone win in Baton Rouge, the ‘Cats scored 13 runs and still only won by three.

That being said, a great pitching performance may just be the key to winning a close, tense contest in an NCAA Tournament game.

Crews, Skenes Dominated

There’s just no stopping Dylan Crews or Paul Skenes.

It was announced on Wednesday that Crews and Skenes made the final three for the Golden Spikes Award, the most prestigious award in all of college baseball. Kentucky had no answer for Crews or Skenes the first time around, as both dominated against the ‘Cats.

Coach Mingione pitched around Crews, walking him six times in just three games. Crews went 3-7 from the plate with a RBI and five runs scored. Skenes was absolutely dominant in the series opener on April 13th. He pitched six innings, allowing seven hits and four earned runs. That doesn’t seem that dominant until you realize that he struck out 13 batters, a career-high for the SEC Pitcher of the Year. These two are a problem.

Tommy White, who was one of the best transfers in the nation this season, also dominated against the ‘Cats. White went 5-13 from the plate, belting a home run and eight RBI to go along with eight runs scored. This LSU team can build a lead, and build it fast.

Other than Skenes however, Kentucky didn’t back down from LSU’s pitching one bit. Just like the Wildcat staff, LSU had five pitchers give up two-plus earned runs, with Griffin Herring and Thatcher Hurd (who was All-Baton Rouge Regional) giving up three. Expect some high-scoring games in Baton Rouge.

Game 1 of the Baton Rouge Super Regional is set for Saturday, June 10 at 3:00 p.m. EST on ESPN.