COLLEGE STATION, Texas – Tenth-ranked LSU (15-5, 1-2 SEC) opens a three-game Southeastern Conference series at 6 p.m. CT Thursday as the Tigers face the No.2 Texas A&M Aggies (19-2, 2-1 SEC) at Blue Bell Park in College Station, Texas.
Game 2 of the series begins at 8 p.m. CT Friday, and first pitch for Game 3 is 2 p.m. CT Saturday. Texas A&M is a perfect 15-0 at Blue Bell Park so far this season.
The games will be carried on affiliates of the LSU Sports Radio Network, including WDGL 98.1 FM in Baton Rouge, Live audio of the games may be accessed at
www.LSUsports.net/live with live stats at www.LSUstats.com.
The games on Thursday and Friday will be televised by the SEC Network. Saturday’s game may be viewed online on SEC Network +, accessible at WatchESPN.com and the Watch ESPN app.
LSU opened SEC play last weekend by dropping two of three games at Alabama, while Texas A&M posted a 2-1 series win at Auburn. The Tigers began this week’s action Tuesday night with an 8-5 victory over Louisiana-Lafayette at Zephyr Field in Metairie, La.
Six of the nine games played between LSU and Texas A&M since the Aggies began playing SEC baseball in 2013 have been decided by one run.
“We’ve played a number of very close games against Texas A&M since they joined the league, and it’s always been an extremely competitive series,” said LSU coach Paul Mainieri. “We’re definitely the underdogs going into the series, but it’s kind of nice being the underdogs for a change. Our players are confident and are looking forward to playing in a great environment for college baseball.
“Texas A&M has a very potent offensive team, so the challenge for our hitters is to try to match their firepower while playing great defense behind our pitchers.”
LSU is sixth in the SEC with a .306 team batting average, and the Tigers have 13 homers and 38 stolen bases on the year. Freshman rightfielder Antoine Duplantis, whose 19-game hitting streak ended on Tuesday against UL-Lafayette, leads LSU with a .377 batting average. Duplantis has six doubles, two triples, 10 RBI, 14 runs and seven steals in seven attempts.
LSU junior centerfielder Jake Fraley is batting .370 with four doubles, three triples, one homer, 12 RBI, 25 runs and 13 steals, and junior second baseman Cole Freeman is hitting .338 with three doubles, eight RBI, 14 runs and 11 stolen bases.
The Tigers will face a Texas A&M pitching staff that is sixth in the league with a 2.94 team ERA. The Aggies are fifth in the SEC in strikeouts recorded by pitchers with 215.
Texas A&M is No. 1 in the SEC with a team batting average of .343, and the Aggies have launched 19 home runs. Senior outfielder J.B. Moss leads Texas A&M at the plate, batting .415 with eight doubles, three triples, three homers and 22 RBI. Senior infielder Boomer White is batting .407 with six doubles, one homer and 17 RBI, and senior catcher Michael Barash and senior infielder Hunter Melton share the team lead with four home runs.
The Texas A&M-LSU series is tied, 18-18-1, and the first meeting between the teams occurred in 1907 in Baton Rouge (a 3-2 LSU win). LSU has won 12 of the last 16 meetings with Texas A&M, including a 2-1 series victory last season in Baton Rouge, when LSU was ranked No. 1 and Texas A&M No. 2.
The teams’ first meeting in which Texas A&M played as a member of the SEC occurred in 2013, when LSU won two of three games in College Station. The Tigers also played in College Station in 2014, when the Aggies posted a 2-1 series victory, so LSU is 3-3 in its last six games in the Aggies’ home ball park.
#10 LSU Fighting Tigers (15-5, 1-2 SEC) at #2 Texas A&M Aggies (19-2, 2-1 SEC)
DATES/TIMES
Thursday, March 24 – 6 p.m. CT
Friday, March 25 – 8 p.m. CT
Saturday, March 26 – 2 p.m. CT
STADIUM
Blue Bell Park in College Station, Texas
RANKINGS
LSU – No. 10 by D1 Baseball; No. 13 by Baseball America; No. 13 by USA Today; No. 15 by Collegiate Baseball
TAMU – No. 2 by D1 Baseball; No. 2 by Baseball America; No. 2 by USA Today; No. 4 by Collegiate Baseball
RADIO
LSU Sports Radio Network affiliates (WDGL 98.1 FM in Baton Rouge
LSUsports.net – live audio and live stats
TV/ONLINE
Thursday and Friday – SEC Network
Saturday – SEC Network +
SERIES RECORD
The Texas A&M-LSU series is tied, 18-18-1, and the first meeting between the teams occurred in 1907 in Baton Rouge (a 3-2 LSU win). LSU has won 12 of the last 16 meetings with Texas A&M, including a 2-1 series victory last season in Baton Rouge, when LSU was ranked No. 1 and Texas A&M No. 2.
The teams’ first meeting in which Texas A&M played as a member of the SEC occurred in 2013, when LSU won two of three games in College Station. The Tigers also played in College Station in 2014, when the Aggies posted a 2-1 series victory, so LSU is 3-3 in its last six games in the Aggies’ home ball park.
Prior to 2013, the most recent meeting between the teams came in the 2004 NCAA Super Regional in Baton Rouge, as LSU swept two games to advance to the College World Series. One of LSU’s most famous matchups with Texas A&M came 27 years ago in May, 1989, when the Tigers defeated the top-ranked Aggies twice on the final day of the NCAA Central Regional to advance to the College World Series.
PITCHING MATCHUPS
Game 1
LSU – Jr. LHP Jared Poche’ (2-2, 2.37 ERA, 30.1 IP, 9 BB, 25 SO)
TAMU – So. RHP Jace Vines (3-0, 3.81 ERA, 26.0 IP, 8 BB 29 SO)
Game 2
LSU – So. RHP Alex Lange (2-1, 4.50 ERA, 30.0 IP, 14 BB, 34 SO)
TAMU – Fr. RHP Tyler Ivey (2-0, 2.39 ERA, 26.1 IP, 11 BB 34 SO)
Game 3
LSU – Sr. LHP John Valek III (4-0, 2.20 ERA, 28.2.1 IP, 2 BB, 26 SO)
TAMU – Sr. RHP Kyle Simonds (4-0, 3.18 ERA, 28.1 IP, 6 BB 28 SO)