LSU coach: Skenes so hot, he could handle big-league batters

Updated Mar. 20, 2023 2:54 p.m. ET

Associated Press

Paul Skenes put up numbers impressive enough last season to earn Mountain West Conference co-pitcher of the year and some All-America honors.

So far this season, he's the most dominant pitcher in the country and doing it under the hot spotlight of LSU and the Southeastern Conference.

After throwing 6 1/3 scoreless innings in a 9-0 win over Texas A&M on Friday, the big right-hander has won all five of his starts and has a nation-leading 59 strikeouts against four walks in 30 1/3 innings.

His 0.53 walks and hits per innings pitched is best in the nation, his 17.51 strikeouts per nine innings rank second, and opposing hitters are batting just .115 against him.

“He could do it against a major league lineup right now and I believe that,” LSU coach Jay Johnson said.

Skenes grew up in Lake Forest, California, and three of his uncles served in the armed forces. He initially wanted to do the same, but he said before the season that he changed his mind last year and wanted to pursue a professional baseball career.

Skenes was drawn to LSU so he could be tutored by Wes Johnson, the former Minnesota Twins pitching coach who left at midseason last year to take the same job at LSU.

Texas A&M coach Jim Schlossnagle said Skenes ranks with Stephen Strasburg and Mark Prior as the best college pitchers he's seen in his 33 years in coaching.

Schlossnagle offered that opinion after watching Skenes strike out 11, walk none and give up four hits against the Aggies. Skenes retired 10 in a row during one stretch.

“It’s one thing to throw 98-100 mph, but this guy is big and tall and loose, and he’s got some life to his fastball,” Schlossnagle told reporters. “He threw a couple decent change-ups. He’s a real pitcher. He’s pitching in the wrong league, I’ll tell you that. He needs to be in the American or National League.”

IN THE POLLS

LSU (18-2) stayed No. 1 in the polls after winning two of three on the road against Texas A&M.

D1Baseball.com ranks Wake Forest (18-3) and Florida (18-4) second and third. Florida is No. 2 and Louisville (17-2) is No. 3, according to Baseball America.Collegiate Baseball newspaper ranks Louisville second and Arkansas (18-2) third.

MIGHTY MIZZOU

Missouri produced the biggest surprise of the weekend, sweeping three games from Tennessee and outscoring the Volunteers 23-6 in the process. The Vols had been swept only once in SEC play since the start of the 2022 season.

Chandler Murphy and Rorik Maltrud combined on a three-hitter with 10 strikeouts in Friday's 9-1 win. The teams played two seven-inning games Sunday, and Austin Troesser and two relievers combined on a one-hitter with 12 strikeouts in a 7-1 win in the finale.

REAL DEAL EAGLES

Eyebrows were raised last week when Boston College failed to crack the highly regarded D1Baseball rankings. The Eagles couldn’t be denied after taking two of three at nationally ranked Florida State. They’re No. 16 in the D1Baseball poll, 14-3 for the first time in program history and 4-2 in the Atlantic Coast Conference for the first time since joining the league two decades ago.

STEAL FEST

VMI tied the NCAA record for stolen bases in an inning when it swiped eight in the first inning of a 15-4 win over Norfolk State on Sunday. The previous team to steal that many in an inning was FIU, against Florida A&M in 1993.

The Keydets' 13 steals for the game set the school record. Justin Starke led the way with four.

OUCH!

William & Mary batters are taking a pounding. Marist pitchers plunked the Tribe 10 times on Feb. 26, and Norfolk State hit them 10 times last Tuesday. Both are national single-game highs.

Surprisingly, William & Mary does not lead the nation with its 58 hit batsmen. Southeastern Louisiana, which has had at least five batters hit in eight of its 20 games, has a total of 71.

___

AP college sports: https://apnews.com/hub/college-sports and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25