Tag: Thatcher Hurd

Starters and shutouts for LSU baseball against Xavier last weekend

Last weekend against Xavier, the starters put up great numbers.

Entering the 2024 season, LSU had a couple of question marks regarding who would be in their starting rotation. We knew that [autotag]Thatcher Hurd[/autotag] would be one of the starters based off of his performance in the College World Series.

LSU lost their other two starters, [autotag]Paul Skenes[/autotag] and [autotag]Ty Floyd[/autotag], to the MLB Draft. Skenes was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 MLB Draft by the Pittsburgh Pirates and Floyd was the 38th pick in the draft by the Cincinnati Reds.

With two spots to fill, where would head coach [autotag]Jay Johnson[/autotag] turn? Johnson has recruited very well as he has landed a lot of talented players out of high school and out of the transfer portal.

The two best pitchers in the transfer portal committed to LSU. [autotag]Luke Holman[/autotag] and [autotag]Gage Jump[/autotag]. Holman was the ace for the Alabama Crimson Tide last season and due to his experience in the SEC, he seemed to fit the mold for another starting pitcher spot.

Jump was coming off of a season where he was unable to pitch due to an injury, but as a freshman at UCLA, he was fantastic. The initial plan for the rotation appeared to be Hurd, Holman, and [autotag]Javen Coleman[/autotag]. That’s how things began as Johnson began to ramp up the pitch count for Jump.

Fast forward to now, the Tigers are starting conference play this weekend and the lineup has changed slightly. Hurd did not get off to the greatest start this year so he has slid from the ace to the Sunday starter. Jump has gotten more healthy and he has become the Saturday starter. Holman has proved that he has the ability to be an ace in this rotation.

Last weekend against Xavier, the starters put up great numbers. In total, between the three starters, they finished the weekend 2-0 with zero earned runs allowed over 16 innings pitched. They only allowed seven total hits as they struck out 29 hitters and only walked four.

The worst part of the weekend is that Hurd was given a no-decision as Xavier beat LSU 2-1 on Sunday to end the Tigers’ winning streak. In spite of that, I believe that this pitching staff has the talent to take LSU to Omaha once again.

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Instant Analysis: Cold bats lead to another loss as LSU drops series finale to Xavier

For the first time this weekend, the LSU offense went cold.

[autotag]Thatcher Hurd[/autotag] got the start on the mound as the LSU Tigers looked to go for the sweep against the Xavier Musketeers.

For the first time this weekend, the LSU offense went cold. In Games 1 and 2 the Tigers scored at least one run in the first inning to get out to an early lead. That was not the case Sunday as they failed to get the sweep with a 2-1 loss, their second of the year.

LSU was unable to score any runs until the bottom of the fourth inning when [autotag]Jared Jones[/autotag] hit a triple and then scored on a fielding error by the Musketeers to give LSU a 1-0 lead.

Xavier got that run back in the top of the fifth inning when a fielding error led to an unearned run to tie the game up at 1-1. Hurd was pulled from the game after five innings. He allowed one (unearned) run on four hits, nine strikeouts, and one walk. [autotag]Nate Ackenhausen[/autotag] replaced him on the mound.

Ackenhausen was greeted by an RBI single in the top of the sixth inning to give Xavier a 2-1 lead. Their first lead of the weekend. In the bottom of the ninth inning, the Tigers were trailing by a run and attempting to make a comeback.

[autotag]Jake Brown[/autotag] was hit by a pitch and got to third base with two outs but a strikeout ended the game with him stranded at third. LSU won the series but failed to get the sweep as Xavier took game three 2-1.

With the loss, LSU drops to 14-2 this season. The Tigers will be back in action on Tuesday night as they host North Dakota State at 6 p.m. CT.

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Jay Johnson releases pitching rotation for this weekend against Xavier

Jay Johnson liked what he saw so much from the starters last weekend that he decided to run it back.

After going 3-0 last weekend in the Astros Foundation Classic, [autotag]Jay Johnson[/autotag] has released his pitching rotation for this weekend’s games against Xavier.

Johnson liked what he saw so much from the starters last weekend that he decided to run it back. [autotag]Luke Holman[/autotag] will start on Friday, [autotag]Gage Jump[/autotag] will start on Saturday, and [autotag]Thatcher Hurd[/autotag] will start on Sunday.

Holman enters Friday’s game with a 3-0 record and a 0.00 ERA. He transferred to LSU after spending a couple of seasons at Alabama and he has been phenomenal for the Tigers. His play has earned him Player of the Month honors by the NCBWA and Pitcher of the Week honors from the SEC.

Jump is a transfer from UCLA who did not get to play last season due to an injury. Johnson is trying to get Jump back into the swing of things as he ramps up his pitch count.

Hurd came into the season as the Tigers ace but he has not gotten off to a great start. He has a 1-1 record with a 6.75 ERA so far but he may be the best Sunday starter in college baseball.

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Instant Analysis: LSU crowned the champions of the Astros Foundation Classic with Sunday win over Texas State

LSU joins Vanderbilt as the only other team to go 3-0 at the Astros Foundation Classic.

LSU took on Texas State in a battle of two teams who came into the game undefeated at the [autotag]Astros Foundation Classic[/autotag]. Texas State knocked off Houston and Texas while LSU knocked off Texas and Louisiana-Lafayette. Both teams entered the game looking to leave as one of the only two teams to go 3-0 on the weekend.

[autotag]Thatcher Hurd[/autotag] got the start on the mound for the Tigers and he had a quality start. He went five innings and allowed three runs (two earned) on seven hits, five strikeouts, and one walk. Hurd was the first LSU starter to give up an earned run during the Classic.

[autotag]Josh Pearson[/autotag] got the Tigers on the board first with a solo shot in the bottom of the third inning to give LSU a 1-0 lead.

In the bottom of the fourth inning, the Tigers tacked on five runs as [autotag]Jake Brown[/autotag] hit an RBI double, [autotag]Paxton Kling[/autotag] had a two-RBI single, [autotag]Tommy White[/autotag] had an RBI single, and [autotag]Hayden Travinski[/autotag] got an RBI on a fielder’s choice to make the score 6-0 LSU.

In the top of the fifth inning, Hurd looked like he would escape the inning unscathed until a ball caromed off of [autotag]Michael Braswell[/autotag]’s glove into left field resulting in a run. After that, a throwing error by Braswell resulted in two more runs scoring for the Bobcats to cut the lead to 6-3.

In the bottom of the sixth inning, LSU got two of those three runs back. Travinski hit an RBI double and [autotag]Stephen Milam[/autotag] hit an RBI double to extend the LSU lead to 8-3.

[autotag]Javen Coleman[/autotag] entered to pitch for LSU in the top of the seventh after [autotag]Christian Little[/autotag] got the Tigers through the sixth unscathed. In the bottom of the eighth inning, Milam hit an RBI single to extend the lead to 9-3. [autotag]Ashton Larson[/autotag] then entered to pinch hit for LSU and he hit an RBI single to make it 10-3 Tigers.

With the bases loaded in the top of the ninth inning, [autotag]DJ Primeaux[/autotag] came into the game to try to get the last out of the evening. DJ was met with a two-RBI single to cut the lead to 10-5 and [autotag]Gavin Guidry[/autotag] would get the call out of the bullpen.

With the win, LSU moves to 11-1 on the season. LSU was crowned the champions of the Astros Foundation College Classic tournament after going undefeated and putting up a better run differential than Vanderbilt, who also finished the tourney 3-0. The Tigers will be back in action on Wednesday against Southeastern Louisiana.

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Jay Johnson names new Friday night starter for Astros Foundation Classic vs. No. 14 Texas

Through two starts so far this season, Thatcher Hurd has struggled. Jay Johnson is changing things up.

As we entered the 2024 baseball season, [autotag]Thatcher Hurd[/autotag] was riding a high of finishing off 2023 the best way possible, by pitching the World Series clinching game against Florida.

It appeared he had turned the corner for the Tigers and he was at his best. That plus a great off-season led to him being named the Friday night starter, or the Ace, for the Tigers in 2024. Through two starts so far this season, Hurd has struggled. He is 0-1 with a 9.00 ERA as he had allowed seven runs in seven innings pitched. It would be more understandable if it was happening against some of the best teams in college baseball, but it was happening in games against VMI and Stony Brook.

On the other hand, [autotag]Luke Holman[/autotag], the Alabama transfer has been incredible. He is 2-0 and has not allowed a run in 12.1 innings so far this season. For that reason, head coach [autotag]Jay Johnson[/autotag] is going to have Holman on the mound for Game 1 of the [autotag]Astros Foundation Classic[/autotag] as the Tigers take on the Texas Longhorns.

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How to watch LSU baseball complete weekend series against Stony Brook

The Tigers will look to avenge their lone loss so far in 2024.

For the final time this weekend, the LSU baseball team will take the field at Alex Box Stadium as it tries to avenge its lone loss of the season so far.

The Tigers will face Stony Brook once again after the Seawolves turned in a 5-2 win on Friday with [autotag]Thatcher Hurd[/autotag] on the mound. It’s unclear who will get the nod for the Tigers in this one against a Stony Brook team that sits at 3-4 on the season after also beating Northwestern State on Sunday.

Here’s everything you need to know as LSU completes its second weekend of the 2024 season on Sunday.

How to watch LSU baseball face Northern Illinois as Tigers look to bounce back from first loss

The Tigers suffered their first loss of the season on Friday against Stony Brook.

The LSU baseball team felt the sting of defeat for the first time in 2024 on Friday afternoon, falling at home 5-2 to Stony Brook after another rough outing on the mound from [autotag]Thatcher Hurd[/autotag].

The 5-1 Tigers look to get back in the win column on Saturday afternoon as they’ll face Northern Illinois once again in a rematch after defeating the Huskies 10-2 on Thursday.

[autotag]Luke Holman[/autotag] will make his second start after transferring in from Alabama, and LSU will hope he can provide another strong outing like he did in a win his first time out.

Here’s everything you need to know as the Tigers seek to bounce back on Saturday.

LSU baseball suffers first loss in 2024 against Stony Brook

Thatcher Hurd got the start on the mound and was credited with his first loss of the season.

[autotag]Thatcher Hurd[/autotag] got the start on the mound and was credited with his first loss of the season as Stony Brook beat LSU 5-2 Friday to end its perfect start to the season. Hurd was pulled from the game after giving up three runs over 4.1 innings on six hits, eight strikeouts, and four walks.

Stony Brook scored the first two runs of the game in the top of the second inning before LSU came back in the bottom of the inning and scored two runs due to an error in center field to tie the game at 2-2.

In the top of the fourth inning, Stony Brook scored again when a runner was walked home with the bases loaded to give them a 3-2 lead. Pitchers from both teams settled in as no one was able to score any more runs until the top of the eighth inning when the Seawolves scored two runs on an RBI double down the left field line to increase their lead to 5-2.

LSU was unable to score any runs in the bottom of the ninth inning and the Tigers lost their first game of the season and dropped to 5-1 overall.

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How to watch LSU baseball’s Friday showdown at The Box against Stony Brook

Thatcher Hurd will be back on the mound after some struggles in his season debut.

After beginning the weekend with a convincing 10-2 win over Northern Illinois on Thursday afternoon, the Tigers will be back at Alex Box Stadium on Friday night for their second game of the weekend as they host Stony Brook.

The Seawolves are 1-3 on the season and are facing a Friday doubleheader that begins with a morning game against Northwestern State. The Tigers, meanwhile, are 5-0 and look to remain perfect on the year.

[autotag]Thatcher Hurd[/autotag] will get the start on the mound after struggling in his season debut against VMI last Friday. He’ll hope for a stronger showing this time around.

Here’s everything you need to know as LSU looks to move to 6-0 to begin the season.

Jay Johnson announces pitching rotation for weekend series

Jay Johnson recently announced what the pitching staff would look like for the Tigers this weekend. 

Week 2 of the college baseball season is on the horizon for [autotag]Jay Johnson[/autotag] and the LSU Tigers. Johnson recently announced what the pitching staff would look like for the Tigers this weekend.

UCLA transfer [autotag]Gage Jump[/autotag] will get the start tonight as the Tigers take on the Northern Illinois Huskies. We got our first look at Jump when he entered to pitch in the first game of the season against VMI. He came in for the ninth inning and earned his first save. On Thursday night, he will get the opportunity to start and he will hopefully have a quality start.

Stony Brook rolls into town on Friday and we will be back to our regularly scheduled rotation as [autotag]Thatcher Hurd[/autotag] will start the Friday night game and [autotag]Luke Holman[/autotag] will start against Northern Illinois on Saturday. The starter for Sunday is still to be determined at this time. This will be the second four-game stretch in a row for the Tigers as they look to start the season 8-0.

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