GLENN GUILBEAU, Tiger Rag Editor
No. 2 LSU scored two touchdowns and two extra points worth of runs in a 14-0 win over outmanned Purdue-Fort Wayne to open the season Friday afternoon in front of 11,456 at Alex Box Stadium.
But the Tigers did not hit a home run. You may have to get used to that this season as the Tigers – on paper – may only have one 20-home run hitter this season in junior first baseman Jared Jones, who hit 28 last year for the Tigers.
“Hope so,” LSU coach Jay Johnson cracked when asked if the Tigers may frequently score a lot of runs in 2025 while going homer-less. “Sign of a good team. The fence is still far in Omaha.”
And that’s the end game – the College World Series in Omaha, Nebraska … even on Feb. 14.
TRANSFER PORTAL? NOT FOR GAVIN GUIDRY
The Tigers (1-0) collected 14 hits in all and scored in every inning the but the third. They also had six extra-base hits, including a lead-off triple by speedy Auburn transfer center fielder Chris Stanfield and two stolen bases.
LSU PLAYS SATURDAY AT 11 A.M. DUE TO WEATHER
The series continues Saturday with an 11 a.m. game that was moved up to 1 p.m. because of expected bad weather. Junior right-hander Anthony Eyanson, a transfer from UC-San Diego, will start for the Tigers against Purdue-Fort Wayne junior left-hander Zane Danielson. Eyanson was 6-2 with a 3.07 ERA last season with 85 strikeouts in 82 innings.
Redshirt sophomore right-hander Chase Shores will start the series finale at 1 p.m. Sunday against junior right-hander Gavin Walters. Shores was 0-1 with a 1.96 ERA in the 2023 season that was cut short because of an elbow injury. He missed all of 2024 with Tommy John elbow reconstruction surgery.
“It came together easier than it ever has,” Johnson said of the opener.
New Friday night starter Kade Anderson showed why he is the new ace. The sophomore left-hander does not throw regularly in the mid-to-upper 90s like many others on this staff, but it didn’t matter. The low 90s worked well enough, just like the high 80s and low 90s got Greg Maddux in the Hall of Fame.
“I forgot to look,” Johnson said when asked what Anderson’s average velocity was, then explained that it doesn’t matter that much with Anderson’s command and mix of pitches.
“I’m not really worried about the velocity when I go five and give up zero,” said Anderson, who allowed four hits in five innings and struck out eight and walked one in a shutout. “I was conserving pitches. Going into every start, I’m trying to make it, honestly, as boring as possible. Just making my pitches – nothing special.”
Just outs and a win. Interestingly, Maddux loved the boredom, too, as he continually destroyed hitters without a lot of fireworks – just outs.
Anderson did come out on fire, though, striking out six of the first eight he faced. That was not boring, and the only batter who reached over that span did so on catcher’s interference.
Anderson (1-0) became the seventh LSU starter on opening day to throw a combined shut-out victory since 1996 – Paul Skenes in 2023, Alex Lange in 2017, Aaron Nola in 2014, Aaron Nola in 2013, Brian Tallet in 2000 and Eddie Yarnall in 1996.
How about this list of recent @LSUbaseball starters who earned (combined) shutout wins on opening day?:
— Todd Politz (@tpolitz) February 14, 2025
Paul Skenes (2023)
Alex Lange (2017)
Aaron Nola (2013 & 2014)
Brian Tallet (2000)
Eddie Yarnall (1996)
All pros.
Kade Anderson added his name today. https://t.co/h4FNIXvCo5
“He’s going to be a really difficult guy (to bat against),” Johnson said. “He’s the leader of the pitching staff. He has the best pitch-ability. He’s the best pitcher. It’s the execution, the command. And his fastball is deceptive (like Maddux) because of the easy arm action, and he throws from the same slot no matter what pitch it is.”
LSU also gave Anderson a 5-0 lead in the first inning on four hits and was up 7-0 after two.
“It helped to get five runs in the first inning,” Anderson said. “We probably could’ve scored 20.”
Junior transfer Daniel Dickinson led the homer-less barrage with a 3-for-4 day and five RBIs with a two-run single in the first inning and a two-run double in the second. Ten players hit safely, including freshman John Pearson with one of the five doubles and sophomore Mic Paul off the bench.
Stanfield and freshman left fielder Derek Curiel each had two hits. Pearson’s brother Josh, a senior outfielder who took the designated hitter role, also doubled as did Jones and Michael Braswell III.
“Offensively, we just did what we were supposed to do,” Johnson said. “I liked getting that many players in. There were some real dudes not in the starting lineup.”
Johnson used 20 players in all, not counting pitchers. He got to use the bevy of outfielders that he has talked about often in preseason as being interchangeable. Stanfield started in center with Duriel in left and Jake Brown in right, and they went a combined 5-for-12 with two runs scored.
Also seeing time in the outfield off the bench were freshman Ryan Costello in right, senior Dalton Beck in left, sophomore Mic Paul in left and center, and sophomore Ashton Larson in right field after pinch-hitting. Costello also played first base. Junior outfielder Ethan Frey also batted as the DH and pinch-ran. Beck also pinch-ran.
Junior transfer infielder Tanner Reaves pinch-ran and played second base. Freshman Mikey Ryan played shortstop. Freshman Cade Arambide and junior transfer Blaise Priester each caught after starting catcher Luis Hernandez, the senior transfer from Indiana State.
“We played a couple of freshman (off the bench) whose names you probably don’t know who are going to be awesome,” Johnson said in reference to Costello and Ryan. “Ashton Larson is a starter in my opinion. So is Ethan Frey and Tanner Reaves is a starter. All three catchers are starters.”
Johnson was happy to make the substitutions and use his plethora of left-handed hitters as his lineup made five Purdue-Fort Wayne pitchers often face a lefty, then a righty, then a lefty and so on.
“Fourteen runs makes me happy,” Johnson said. “But we do have a lot of speed, power, solid hitters and position versatility for good match-ups.”
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