GLENN GUILBEAU, Tiger Rag Editor
LSU’s pitching staff has an Ace, and a Dude.
LSU coach Jay Johnson went with the Dude in the Tigers’ NCAA Regional opener on Friday night. That would be junior right-hander Anthony Eyanson, a transfer from Los Angeles and UC-San Diego who showed again why he is California Cool.
He was supposed to start the first NCAA postseason game of his life at 2 p.m. Rain and lightning pushed that to 5:06 p.m., then to 7:30 p.m. And it didn’t matter.
“Eat Uncrustables, and lay down,” Eyanson said of his repertoire during five and a half hours of weather delays.
LSU POURS IT ON ARKANSAS-LITTLE ROCK AFTER RAIN DELAY
Then he ate up Arkansas-Little Rock, crunching them into pebbles for a 7-0 win as he gave up just five singles in seven and two-thirds innings with seven strikeouts and one walk. Only three Trojan batters reached second base, Eyanson (10-2) retired the side in order twice, faced the minimum three times and retired the last five he faced for the win.
The No. 6 national seed Tigers (44-14), who are the No. 1 seed here, advance to play at 8 p.m. Saturday against No. 2 Regional seed Dallas Baptist (41-16), which beat No. 3 seed Rhode Island, 6-2, in a game that stretched past 1 a.m. Saturday.
LSU ace Kade Anderson (8-1, 3.54 ERA), a sophomore left-hander who usually starts the Friday night game, will start for LSU. A win Saturday, and LSU will play for the NCAA Regional title on Sunday at 8 p.m. A win there, and the Tigers host the best-of-three Super Regional next weekend with the College World Series in Omaha, Nebraska, on the line.
Arkansas-Little Rock (24-33) plays the Rhode Island (38-21) in an elimination game at 2 p.m. Saturday.
Eyanson won his fourth straight start with a save in between the last two as he threw the last three innings against Texas A&M in the Southeastern Conference Tournament last week after Anderson, who got the 4-3 win.
“He did what he does. Kind of customary at this point in time,” Johnson said.
“Just take it all in. Super grateful for being on the mound. Just wanted to attack and compete,” Eyanson said.
Johnson is just grateful Eyanson, the No. 4 overall prospect in the portal last year by Baseball America, decided to come to LSU.
ANTHONY EYANSON CAME TO LSU FOR WEEKENDS LIKE THIS
“Number one, he’s an incredible athlete,” Johnson said. “Not just a pitcher. Part of that is his physical conditioning.”
Eyanson (6-foot-2, 208) played quarterback, wide receiver and safety and kicked at Lakewood High in the Los Angeles area.
“He has the ability to get better as the game goes along, and I would say it’s the same characteristic, he’s getting better as the season has gone along because he’s in tremendous physical condition,” Johnson said. “And he has great self-awareness. He’s taken a few things that he needed to do a little bit better and done that. It’s accentuated or opened up all the options that he has, and he’s just really tough to deal with. That’s a lot coming at you, and he makes it really hard to plan against.”
And he is versatile. Over the last two weekends, Eyanson relieved for the first time at LSU and was the No. 1 starter this weekend for the first time.
“Just being adaptable in certain situations,” he said. “Understanding that my routine is going to prepare me for what’s to come. Just learning how to master that and really control myself helps me for any situation.”
Over the last two weeks, Johnson has twice called Eyanson the best pitcher he’s ever had at wiggling out of scoring situations as a pitcher. That adaptability made Eyanson a great choice for this game with the two rain delays. He adjusted to an emotionally draining situation of waiting to pitch. He could also be a closer again, if needed.
“I made the decision on Wednesday and communicated it to him on Wednesday,” Johnson said. “I think we’re fortunate to have what I would call two aces. You lead with your ace. It could’ve gone either way for us with those guys (Eyanson and Anderson). You want to make sure the pitcher can handle the moment. And that dude (Eyanson) can handle any moment. He did a great job for us tonight.”
Eyanson thrived on it.
“Was prepared for it. Just really excited. I say that a lot. I’m going to keep saying that,” he said. “Super fun to pitch in this game. Super blessed for coach to believe in me and take the ball for the first game. Means a lot. Shows a lot of support. Just seeing the trust they had in me to pitch the first game was a big step for me.”
Do not be surprised if Eyanson opens the Super Regional series should LSU get there and perhaps the first game in Omaha. The earlier he pitches in a tournament, the better chance he has of pitching more and possibly closing.
“Love pitching in the moment,” he said. “Whatever it is for me – starting or relieving.”
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