LSU is back for week 2 of fall baseball with another set of scrimmages on deck. Day 1 was on Thursday evening and there was plenty of important info to take from the 6 innings.
Before we get going, I’ll list off the lineups for each team and who pitched. We’ll then transition to some bullet point notes.
Lineups
Gold (visitors)
1.) 2B – Malachi Washington
2.) RF – Angel Laya
3.) C – Omar Serna
4.) DH – Lucas Nawrocki
5.) 1B – Mason Braun
6.) 3B – John Pearson
7.) LF – Jack Ruckert
8.) SS – Parker Loew
9.) CF
– William Patrick
SP – William Schmidt
RP – Zion Theophilus
RP – Bradyn Cupit
Purple (home)
1.) DH – Jason Wachs
2.) 3B – Dawson Park
3.) LF – Dominic Santarelli
4.) C – Cade Arrambide
5.) SS – Steven Milam
6.) 2B – Cade Kurland
7.) CF – Nate Davis-Cleary
8.) RF – Eddie Yamin
9.) 1B – Dylan Minnatee
SP – Cooper Sides
RP – Jonah Aase
RP – Jordan Martinez
RP – Ethan Plog
Scrimmage notes
- Both starting pitchers were great. Threw a ton of strikes and looked untouchable outside of one swing.
- Cooper Sides final line: 3.0 IP / 1 H / 4 K / 1 BB / 35 pitches (25 strikes, 71%)
- Sides once again flashed a 3-pitch mix including a fastball up to 96, along with a slider in the mid-80s and a curveball in the mid-70s. It looked like he started to wear down in his third inning, walking William Patrick on only 5 pitches, but he locked back in to battle through. His fastball velocity was down around 94 by the end, but that’s two phenomenal performances through the first two weeks of fall ball for the incoming freshman. It’s easy to see why folks made such a big deal about him passing on the MLB draft to come to LSU.
- William Schmidt final line: 2.0 IP / 0 H / 4 K / 0 BB / 27 pitches (19 strikes, 70%)
- Schmidt struck out the side looking in his first inning of work. Also showed a 3, possibly even a 4-pitch mix. Fastball was up as high as 97, but the intriguing pitch was an 89-90 mph cutter/slider. We saw him throw a hard slider in the mid 80s last year and a curveball even slower than that, so I’m not exactly sure what it is. It looks good, though, and could take his growth to the next level. Through two performances, though extremely early, he looks as if he can challenge for the Friday night role.
- Lucas Nawrocki had a great night and has been the only player to get a solid barrel on Sides through the first two weeks. He blasted a near 400 foot homerun in to the Diamond Deck in right field on a slider. The freshman has true two-way capabilities according to Jay Johnson and we got to see the hitting side on Thursday night.
- Nate Davis-Cleary’s speed was on full display once again. He laid down a sacrifice bunt with runners on 1st and 2nd that was perfectly placed between the 3rd base line and the grass of the infield. His speed forced a rushed throw from John Pearson that was off target, allowing a run to score. On the very first pitch of the next at-bat, he stole 2nd without a throw. His speed is a weapon.
- Zion Theophilus continued to look improved. He was up to 94 with a filthy slider. It looks like it has potential as one of the best pitches on the staff if he can present it well. His first inning of work was one of the innings that they placed two runners on base to start the inning and after both moved up to 2nd and 3rd, he struck out the side to prevent a single run from scoring. Command slipped in his second inning, but otherwise looked pretty good.
- After a super impressive 3-inning performance in his first mound time in 2 years, Jonah Aase came back to earth a little. He was falling behind hitters in his first inning of work, while throwing a lot of offspeed. His second inning was much better, though. The command issues are to be expected for a guy coming back from elbow surgery and not having thrown for so long. Expect more up and down performances as he continues to shake off the rust.
- Dawson Park at 3rd base is a luxury. He has all of the talent and ability to start at shortstop, but will likely be at 3rd due to Steven Milam.
- Dominic Santarelli is faster than you may think. While he’s massive, he’s athletic and can move. He turned a routine single in to right-center field in to a double with his hustle.
- Angel Laya got jammed on a fastball and still hit it just short of the warning track in center field. I’m excited to see more of his power potential. He started in RF, but later moved to CF and that’s when he crashed in to the wall very hard in left-center trying to chase down a ball that hit off of the wall. The thud was very loud and he stayed on the ground for about a minute, sending Head Trainer Isaac Trujillo out to check on him. He got up, walked it off, and stayed in for the rest of the inning, but stayed out of the game for the final inning. He looks like a tough kid.
- Malachi Washington has a cannon. He, again, moved to 3rd base after playing the first 4 innings at 2nd. He fielded a slower grounder that called for a stronger throw and he gunned it over right in to John Pearson’s chest, who was then at 1st. He added a hard hit opposite field single later.
- Dylan Minnatee is the one who hit the ball that sent Laya in to the wall. It was a rope to the opposite gap and he turned it in to a triple. While his path to the field may be tough during his freshman season, he’s an intriguing player that was one of the lesser-talked about incoming freshman.
- John Pearson hit a ball that still may not have landed. He teed off and hit a bomb that just missed to the left of the scoreboard. If it had been about 10 feet to the right, it would have hit the top of the scoreboard. It was a 3-run blast, giving him 4 RBIs on the night.
- Jordan Martinez got beat up pretty good tonight. He is another two-way player, reaching up to 94 mph with his fastball. He both pitched and hit last week, so I’d expect him to swing a bat on Friday. His talent is noticeable, though.
- Jack Ruckert played much of the night in the outfield, which I find very interesting. With the large influx of infielders, we’ll have to keep an eye out on if this is just temporary to get him on the field for scrimmages or if it’s something they’re testing as a possibility to find more ways to get him on the field in 2027. He’s been swinging a hot bat through the first two weeks and had a great battle with Martinez tonight. Ruckert fouled off 4 straight 3-2 pitches before earning a walk.
- Parker Loew and William Patrick both executed perfect hit-and-runs with line drives through gaps on the infield. Loew’s was much-needed after he made an error on a routine groundball at shortstop that allowed a run to score.
- Bradyn Cupit worked 2 innings and while he allowed 2 runs in his first inning, he was much improved in his second. He went straight at Cade Arrambide, Steven Milam, and Cade Kurland for a 1-2-3 inning.
- Ethan Plog came in for the 7th and after striking out Davis-Cleary, things went a little awry. He gave up the single to Washington, then walked Serna and hit Nawrocki, which is when Johnson called the game.
Defensive movements
Yamin LF to C
Minnatee 1B to LF
Santarellig LF to 1B
Washington 2B to 3B to CF
Davis-Cleary CF to RF
Ruckert LF to 2B to RF
Pearson 3B to 1B
Braun 1B to LF
Laya RF to CF
Player of the night
Lucas Nawrocki finished 2-2 with the 2-run HR, a single, a walk, and a hit by pitch. The homerun was even more impressive considering how good Cooper Sides has been through two appearances.
Next up
LSU will play two more scrimmages this weekend. Friday at 6 pm and Sunday at 4 pm. As always, entry and parking are free to the public. Entry is at gate 2 behind home plate, which opens 15 minutes before first pitch. I will be back out there on Friday for more play by play. Follow me on X @DCBilliotJr to keep up with the action!
