LSU Baseball: Jay Johnson’s Message Was Simple Before Northwestern State Game – Throw Strikes

By GLENN GUILBEAU, Tiger Rag Editor

LSU’s 11 pitchers threw 158 pitches against Northwestern State Tuesday night, and 102 of those were strikes for a 64.5 percentage.

It was a simple formula LSU coach Jay Johnson and pitching coach Nate Yeskie asked of their staff, and they got it for a 4-2 win to end a four-game losing streak in front of 10,662 at Alex Box Stadium.

LSU Baseball Snaps 4-Game Losing Skid With 4-2 Win Over Northwestern State

And the best numbers were 16 strikeouts and only two walks from a team that entered the game fourth from the bottom in the Southeastern Conference with 173 walks.

“Yeah, probably the best pitched game that we’ve had in a while,” Johnson said. “Proud of the pitching staff. All the way through, really good efforts.”

Senior reliever Connor Benge and sophomore left-hander Cooper Williams particularly pounded the strike zone. Benge threw nine strikes out of 12 pitches with two strikeouts over one inning of relief in the fifth and sixth for the win to go to 1-0 on the season. Williams threw only five pitches, but four were strikes with a strikeout in the sixth to keep LSU ahead 4-2.

Jake Brown’s two-out, three-run home run put LSU ahead, 4-2 in the fifth.

Double The Magic 🪄@JakeBrown_14 | @DevenSheerin pic.twitter.com/RPPJWbjyCw

— LSU Baseball (@LSUbaseball) April 15, 2026

Freshman Marcos Paz struck out all three batters he faced swinging in the seventh over 19 pitches with 11 strikes. Look for more of him.

“Electric inning,” Johnson said. “He’s moving toward being one of the best, if not the best, pitchers on this staff after a great performance on Sunday as well. Really excited about what Marcos is doing. He’s got tremendous talent. He’s got four pitches he can throw for a strike. He’s finding a rhythm.”

Paz missed his senior year at Hebron High in Carrollton, Texas, with an injury.

“We’re trying to bring him along slowly and correctly,” Johnson said. “He’s bouncing back good. Very loud stuff, up to 97 or 98 mph. We think he’s going to do a lot more than throw one inning out of the pen, but he’s more than ready to do that in high-leverage SEC situations and will develop into a great starter here as well.”

LSU did not walk a batter until the eighth by freshman Zion Theophilus. But junior left-handed Oregon transfer Santiago Garcia and sophomore Deven Sheerin came to the rescue. Garcia had a strikeout and a walk over 12 pitches with six strikes before Sheerin struck out four of the five batters he faced. He closed the game over the final inning and two-thirds for his third save with 25 pitches and 16 strikes.

Zac Cowan started the game and allowed one run on three hits with a homer and two strikeouts in 34 pitches and 22 strikes. Grant Fontenot pitched the third and fourth, striking out three with no hits or runs with 32 pitches and 23 strikes.

“Thought it was a great night,” Johnson said. “Zac was very much himself. He and Grant each got us two innings and threw barely over 30 pitches. They’ll be ready for Friday. That was the goal.”

LSU (23-15, 6-9 SEC) is now primed and ready and on a winning streak going into a key home series, considering its slipping NCAA postseason hopes with a 72 RPI. The Tigers host No. 10 Texas A&M (28-7, 9-5) with the opener at 6 p.m. Friday.

“Everybody contributed that was in the lineup tonight,” Johnson said.

Derek Curiel, Steven Milam and John Pearson each went 2-for-4 in LSU’s nine-hit attack. Brayden Simpson hit his first home run of the season for a 1-1 tie in the third.

“John’s becoming a more complete hitter right now,” Johnson said. “He made a nice contribution, but I still believe his best days are in front of him. Pretty good effort by everybody.”

Baby steps.

“Texas A&M has one of the best offensive teams in the country,” Johnson said. “They throw strikes. It’s going to be a good challenge. I’m glad we have this in front of us. This is a good opportunity for our team.”