BATON ROUGE — LSU baseball players that participated in summer collegiate leagues have returned to Baton Rouge, ready to begin fall semester classes on Monday.
Several Tigers excelled in summer league competition, sharpening their skills for the 2011 season as LSU seeks its third College World Series appearance in four years.
LSU junior outfielder Mikie Mahtook helped lead the U.S. Collegiate National Team to the silver medal at the World University Championships in Tokyo. Mahtook hit .271 during USA’s 19-game summer schedule with two doubles, one triple, one homer, 11 runs and 10 steals in 11 attempts.
Junior right-hander Matty Ott participated in the Cape Cod League All-Star Game in July at Fenway Park in Boston, and he pitched brilliantly throughout the summer for the Harwich (Mass.) Mariners. Ott was 2-0 with a 0.44 ERA in 20.1 innings (15 appearances), recording four walks, 19 strikeouts and seven saves. He limited opponents to a .134 batting average.
Junior infielder Tyler Hanover also played in the Cape Cod League All-Star Game, and he hit .286 (27-for-90) this summer for the Yarmouth-Dennis (Mass.) Red Sox with 10 doubles and 12 RBI in 38 games.
LSU senior right-handers Ben Alsup and Daniel Bradshaw pitched effectively in the Valley League. Alsup was 4-0 with a 2.30 ERA and 26 strikeouts in 31.1 innings for the Staunton (Va.) Braves, while Bradshaw was 2-0 with a 3.41 ERA and 22 strikeouts in 31.2 innings for the Waynesboro (Va.) Generals.
Sophomore infielder Alex Edward batted .304 for the Danville (Ill.) Dans in the Prospect League with seven doubles, four triples, two homers and 19 RBI in 43 games. Sophomore outfielder Mason Katz was spectacular at the plate for the Dans through eight games before suffering a shoulder injury. Katz hit .464 (13-for-28) before sustaining the injury with two doubles, one triple and five RBI.
LSU begins its full-squad fall practice session on September 26. The Tigers open the 2011 season on February 18 when they play host to Wake Forest in Alex Box Stadium.