GLENN GUILBEAU, Tiger Rag Editor
It’s not the heat. It’s Alex Box Stadium, and the heat.
And the humidity.
“Drink a lot of water,” LSU second baseman Daniel Dickinson said, but he doesn’t really know. A junior first-year Tiger, he played the previous two seasons at Utah Valley in Orem, where it was 61 degrees Saturday morning.
At the same time Saturday morning, it was 85 in Baton Rouge with a high expected in the mid-90s and a heat index in the 100s at 1 p.m. when No. 6 national seed LSU (46-15) hosts West Virginia (44-14) in the opener of a best-of-three Super Regional at Alex Box Stadium on ESPN.
Game two won’t be quite as hot at 5 p.m. Sunday on ESPN2. A third game – if necessary – will be Monday at a time to be determined. Hopefully, it will be at night.
LSU started sophomore left-hander Kade Anderson (9-1, 3.28 ERA) against senior left-hander Griffin Kirn (5-2, 3.13 ERA).
And LSU coach Jay Johnson revamped his lineup for the second straight game, replacing regular lead-off hitter and left-handed hitting left fielder Derek Curiel with left-handed hitting right fielder Josh Pearson. Curiel was moved to seventh in the order. First baseman Jared Jones moved up to third in the order from sixth last game. Before that, he was usually the No. 2 hitter. Shortstop Steven Milam will be hitting fourth after usually hitting third.
Catcher Luis Hernandez, who homered twice in LSU’s 10-6 elimination-game win over Arkansas-Little Rock Monday, moved from eighth to fifth. Second baseman Daniel Dickinson moved from fourth to sixth. Michael Braswell III is hitting eighth and center fielder Chris Stanfield ninth.
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The winner advances to the College World Series in Omaha, Nebraska.
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At least, there is little chance of rain on Saturday, so possibly no weather delays as has been the case throughout this season for the Tigers.
“Coach does a good job of integrating water stations, a lot of rest, a lot of hydration,” Dickinson said.
“We like to say, ‘The most hydrated team wins,'” West Virginia coach Steve Sabins said Friday.
He too will learn just how hot The Box can be today – particularly at about 3 p.m. It will be more than just hydration.
“Probably more mental than physical,” said LSU coach Jay Johnson, who grew up amid the pleasant temperatures of northern California in Oroville and was an assistant in virtually always-70 degrees San Diego. He has learned as he coached at Arizona amid 100-degree heat. And he hosted the 2023 NCAA Regional and Super Regional in Baton Rouge on his way to the Tigers’ national championship.
“We did some things that were very specific to what we need to do to be successful,” Johnson said regarding the heat. “It was probably like 15 to 18 degrees warmer on Thursday than when we practiced last Thursday.”
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Johnson has used the football facility’s recovery center twice this week amid the soaring temperatures.
“There’s an element of making sure physically they’re in the right spot, so that mentally they can be in the right spot,” he said. “We’ve asked a lot of a few players all season. So just want to make sure we’ve got them in the right spot at 1 p.m.”
In West Virginia, LSU is playing a cold-weather team that is located in Morgantown in the northern part of the state. So the Mountaineers are not used to above-100 heat indexes, but they are road tested and lead the nation in road wins with 24.
“Geographically, we have to go on the road early in the season because of weather, so our team’s certainly battle tested on the road,” Sabins said. “It’s hard to lead the country in road wins, regardless of how many you play. That’s certainly a factor, but our guys are gritty. Coming to West Virginia, you’re in for a lot of different elements when you train, when you practice. Our guys have been through the ringer. So this time of year, no class, great weather, they’re excited.”
Great weather?
Yes, the Mountaineers have never played baseball at Alex Box. But they did just beat No. 11 seed Clemson in its home ballpark last week in the NCAA Regional and knocked off the SEC’s Kentucky to win the tournament.
“This has become very normal for us to go on the road and eat hotel eggs and sleep on bad pillows, and everything else,” Sabins said. “That’s kind of part of our deal.”
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West Virginia’s relief pitchers also dealt with major distractions from Clemson fans as the visitor bullpen is right next to a beer garden.
“The bullpen thing is bogus at Clemson,” Sabins said. “They’ve got it so close to the bullpen. They can actually grab a pitcher’s arm. It’s close enough. But an awesome atmosphere. At Clemson, it’s a little bit artificial (with piped-in music). The crowd here is ruckus and really into the game. The ballgames I’ve watched here, they don’t pump as much music in the stadium.”
They don’t need to.
“The crowd here is ruckus and really into the game,” he said.
They’re used to the heat and bringing it.
“I love it,” LSU sophomore shortstop Steven Milam said. “The lights, the fans, the heat, everything. It just means more, and to be able to have that pressure. Slowing down in the big moments is what I’ve always wanted. I love playing in the postseason.”
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