BATON ROUGE — After engaging in conditioning sessions and individual drills for the past four weeks, the LSU baseball squad is ready to begin its fall practice period at 1 p.m. Sunday in Alex Box Stadium.
The month-long fall camp, which is scheduled to end on November 1, will consist largely of intrasquad scrimmages as first-year coach Paul Mainieri and his assistants begin evaluating their players.
All fall practice sessions are conducted in Alex Box Stadium, and they are open to the public.
Mainieri said he has been pleased with the way the Tigers have responded to the demands of their conditioning program.
“We’ve been really concentrating on getting the guys in prime condition,” Mainieri explained. “We’re getting stronger, we’re getting in better shape, and I think the kids are starting to realize what I’ve been preaching to them from the beginning ? winning college baseball games and championships is not an easy task, and it takes a great level of commitment, dedication and sacrifice.
“These guys are learning that and they have worked extremely hard. We’re not letting up on them; if they want to play at LSU and represent this university, they must be dedicated to the cause.”
Mainieri said that he and pitching coach Terry Rooney have been impressed with the work of the LSU pitchers during individual bullpen sessions.
“We think there is a lot of talent on our pitching staff,” Mainieri said. “We think we have some kids that are going to really pitch well for us. Our hopes are that our pitching staff is going to lead the way. We’re determined to have a solid pitching staff to give us a chance to win every day.”
The Tigers return seven pitchers who took the mound last season, including weekend starters Clay Dirks and Louis Coleman and relievers Jonathan Wilhite, Michael Bonura, Darryl Shaffer, Nolan Cain and Ryan Byrd.
The pitching staff has been bolstered by the addition of several new hurlers, including left-handers Charlie Furbush and Blake Martin, and right-handers Jared Bradford and Chris Sorce.
Mainieri said he has also been pleased with the progress made by the LSU hitters during their sessions with assistant coaches Cliff Godwin and Blair Barbier.
“I do think we have some potential with the bats,” Mainieri said. “We had a batting practice session the other day where we must have lost 50 baseballs. It made me feel pretty good to see some guys hitting the ball out of the park.”
LSU features five starters from its 2006 lineup, including outfielders Steven Waguespack and Jarred Bogany, and infielders Jordan Mayer, J.T. Wise and Michael Hollander.
Newcomers who could make an immediate impact in the batting order include outfielder Blake Dean, infielders Jason Lewis and Ryan Schimpf, and catcher Sean Ochinko.
LSU will open the 2007 season on Friday, Feb. 9 when the Tigers play host to Saint Mary’s (Calif.) in Alex Box Stadium.