Huck is going to be late. HenryJames may add some commentary. Please feel free to comment below. - S.R.
I get home form work, cut the tv on and the very first thing I see is a three home run by LSU. Damn.
Green got the first two guys before hitting the 3rd batter and then allowing a single.
Ranaudo is struggling to find the strike zone. He only has his fastball, and it's either too low or off the outside corner. He gives up two singles and a walk, but Keyes strikes out on a high fastball with the bases loaded. Horrible at bat by Keyes. He swung at maybe one strike.
LSU gets another run across in the top of the 2nd on three singles. Green is not long for this game. 4-0.
Texas gets the leadoff runner on base with a error single, but both Brandon Loy and Michael Torres swing at high fastballs and fly out.
Brandon Workman is now on the mound for Texas, and LSU can't catch up to his fastball. He allows a leadoff single (two strike curveball), and then strikes out the final two hitters.
Texas has something going in the 3rd. Tucker leads off with a double. Belt walks. Moldenhauer gets robbed of a double by a lucky grab by the centerfielder. Double steal moves the runners up. Rupp gets an RBI ground out.
Keyes draws an eight pitch walk, and then Rowe walks on four straight. Clark draws a ten pitch walk, and it's now 4-2. Loy then grounds out weakly to short to end it. Ranaudo threw about 45 pitches that inning.
Huckleberry is here to save the day. HenryJames obviously sucks at this and has led us to a 2-run deficit.
Workman back out to face Helenihi about 3 hours after his last pitch. Strike one called. Second pitch is grounded to Loy for an easy first out. Strike one called to Nola with one out. High fastball makes it 1-1. Another fastball is fouled to the right side for the second strike. Another fastball just misses low and/or outside and the count is even. Fastball is grounded hard back to Workman but he snags it then takes his time flipping to Belt for the second out. Sharp 12-to-6 curve for a called strike one. LeMahieu lays off a low breaker for ball one. High fastball makes it 2-1 to the Tigers' leadoff hitter. Another high fastball and he fouls it off for the second strike. High fastball and he checks his swing to fill the count. Another high fastball is flied to Keyes right about where he was standing for the third out. No runs on no hits and no runners left.
Easy inning for Workman and we head to the bottom of the fourth. Obviously Ranaudo won't be able to go very deep in this game but we need to get to him quickly if he's back out there.
Ranaudo is back out there to face Torres. Line drive right at Mahtook. That seems like the 3rd or 4th line drive right at the centerfielder for Torres in the CWS. He's hitting even better than his numbers indicate. Fastball taken for strike one by Tucker. Fastball is up for ball one. Great hit by Tucker on a fastball at the knees on the outside black as he slaps it the other way for a single. Curveball breaks in there for strike one to Belt. Fastball is tapped foul and it's 0-2. Low fastball tapped foul again to keep it 0-2. This fastball is fouled off to the left and there are still two strikes on Belt. Nice curveball from Ranaudo and Belt chases it for strike three to bring Moldenhauer to the plate with two outs and a runner on first. Throw over by Ranaudo to check on Tucker. Fastball for strike one in a good spot. Curveball is on a tee but is weakly grounded to second for the third out. No runs on one hit and one runner left on.
Really wish we had extended that inning against Ranaudo but there is still plenty of time. Obviously we have to be sharp in the field and on the mound.
Ball one high from Workman and then Schimpf grounds it sharply right to Belt and he steps on first for the out. Fastball high to Dean for ball one. Another high fastball and this one is fouled back to make the count 1-1. Ball two is followed by another 3 unassisted for Belt. Ochinko pops the first pitch foul behind the plate and Rupp makes the catch just in front of the screen. No runs on no hits and no runners left on base.
A very nice inning for Workman as it took him only 7 pitches to retire the side. Very good to get Ranaudo back out there with a short rest. Let's see if we can make him work in the bottom half of the inning.
Rupp takes a fastball for strike one from Ranaudo. Another on the inner half and Rupp is quickly behind 0-2. Curveball is fouled to the right side to keep it 0-2. Fastball grounded right up the middle for a leadoff single. First pitch fastball and Keyes hammers it out of the yard to left-center and the game is tied. Texas Longhorn power, baby. Fastball just outside is called strike one to Rowe. Rowe swings at a 60-foot curveball for strike two. This time the curveball almost gets back to Gibbs but Rowe swings at another one in the dirt to strike out as Gibbs completes the play with the throw to first. Clark hits a fastball foul for strike one. Curveball is right there but only tapped foul as the count moves to 0-2. Clark fouls it off and it's still 0-2. Mike Patrick slobs some LSU knob as though Texas isn't a consensus Top 5 team that was the #1 seed in the entire tournament (deserved or not). Another foul and it remains 0-2 on Ranaudo's 100th pitch. Curveball in the dirt outside is taken for ball one. Hanging curveball is lashed into left field for a 1-out single by Clark. Bertuccini and Bradshaw are getting up in the LSU bullpen. I think I saw Bradshaw, I know I saw Bertuccini. Fastball at the knees on the corner for strike one to Loy. He did not square to bunt. Curveball in the dirt is ball one as Loy is swinging away. Garrido looks like he doesn't want to give Ranaudo an out when he's struggling. Excellent decision. Curveball in there for strike two, though. Fastball is grounded foul to keep the count 1-2. Jones up in the bullpen now for the Tigers as they're getting a lefty ready, too. Fastball misses way outside to even the count at 2-2. Fastball is lined to right but it lands foul by a good 10-15 feet and there will be another 2-2 pitch. Fastball is low to fill the count to Loy. Fastball is hit in the air to right and Mitchell catches it in foul ground for out number two. Patient at-bat there by Loy but he's retired. Curveball stays up for ball one to Torres. Fastball is low and in to make it 2-0. Fastball is hit in the air to left as Torres missed a pitch to hit there. Schimpf makes the catch to end the inning. Two runs on three hits and one runner left.
And it's now a 4-inning game for the national championship. Ranaudo is in the neighborhood of 115 pitches and is now at the point where we want him to stay in. It should be a battle of the bullpens starting now.
Keyes is getting stretched out in the outfield as he is cramping up now. I guess he trotted too quickly around the bases. Mitchell will lead off against Workman in the top of the 6th. Curveball at the knees for strike one. Curveball at the knees on the outside corner for strike two. Curve in the dirt is taken to make it 1-2. Another curveball stays outside and it's even at 2-2. Yet another curve is low and the count is now full. The ump is showing 2-2 and they're trying to figure it out now. Ump figures it out and this will be a payoff pitch. Fastball on the fists gets down before Rupp can chase it down near the third base dugout. Next pitch is well inside for a leadoff walk to Mitchell. Not good after getting ahead 0-2. Patrick declares that Mitchell can actually fly. Mahtook squares and Workman throws to first. Another throw over and Mitchell is back standing up this time. Fastball taken for ball one and Rupp has another passed ball to move Mitchell to second. Not this shit again. Replay shows that it may have been a slider that didn't slide. Johnson out to talk to Workman now. Dicharry and Wood are warming up in the Texas bullpen. Mahtook squares early and Workman spins toward second. Fastball inside for ball two as he pulls the bat back. Another spin by Workman. No square this time and Mahtook takes a fastball high for ball three. Fastball is on the inner half at the thighs for strike one. Fastball at the knees fills the count. Another spin by Workman. Low fastball is fouled off as Mitchell breaks but doesn't go on the pitch. Fastball is lined to right-center and LSU takes the lead as Mahtook is into second with an RBI double. Not sure why those fastballs were below the belt. Mahtook hasn't been able to handle the fastball up in the zone. Johnson out again and Dicharry is coming in for Texas. Dicharry checks on Mahtook with Gibbs at the plate. Gibbs gets the bunt down and Dicharry blows the throw to first and there are runners on the corners with nobody out on the sac and E1. Like I said, not this shit again. LSU tries to give us an out and we don't take it. Fastball is fouled back for strike one. Curveball is hit to left and it's a sacrifice fly as Patrick was hoping it was a home run when it was hit. 6-4 LSU with one out as Gibbs stays on first. Fastball is grounded to Tucker's left and he can get only the out at first. Two outs with Gibbs on second base. Changeup high to LeMahieu for ball one. Fastball low makes it 2-0. Wild pitch in the dirt gets Gibbs to third base on ball three. Changeup low walks LeMahieu to bring up Schimpf. Wood will come into the game now to face the left-handers in the middle of the LSU lineup. First pitch to Schimpf is a fastabll away for ball one. Fastball just misses outside and it's 2-0. Fastball fouled back for strike one. Fastball up and in looks like a ball and the ump says Schimpf gets first base on the HBP. Not sure on this one but the replay shows the ball change directions a little at his arm. Looks like the correct call. Fastball just misses outside, I think, at the belt for ball one. Wood hasn't gotten any close calls. Another one just misses outside at the knees. Fastball that was ball three inside is tapped foul by Dean for strike one. Another HBP brings in the 7th run for LSU. Unbelievable. Replay confirms again. Base hit through the left side and Clark's throw home is terrible. 9-4 LSU. This is getting out of hand in a hurry. That was the second hit of the inning to knock in the fifth run of the frame. Mitchell lines softly to Loy for the third out in his second plate appearance of the inning. 5 runs on two fucking hits and one error; two runners left on base.
Terrible.
Tucker leads off as Ranaudo stays out there after a 5-hour rest. Strike one on a pitch Wood didn't get last inning. Curveball in the dirt outside for ball one. Fastball way up makes it 2-1. Fastball grounded foul to even the count at two balls and two strikes. Fastball past Tucker's chin fills the count as Tucker gets out of the way. Fastball is flied to centerfield for the first out. Chad Jones will come in now to face Belt and Moldenhauer. Now ESPN is lauding Ranaudo's crappy performance. Belt takes a fastball high for ball one. Fastball in there for strike one. Fastball in there again makes it 1-2. Breaking ball in there for strike three. Belt didn't need a bat for that one. Fastball misses up and away to Moldenhauer. Fastball on the inside corner for strike one. Another fastball at the knees for strike two. Slider is grounded foul outside first and it stays 1-2. Another slider in there for strike three. No runs on no hits and no runners left on.
LSU is pumped and our guys have lost all their aggression. This game is about over.
Top of the 7th now as Wood will face Mahtook. Popup to Tucker in foul ground for the first out. Gibbs up now from the right side. Strike one taken on a fastball. Slider low for ball one. Fastball is hit in the air to center and Rowe makes the catch for out number two. Flyball to Keyes on the first pitch to Helenihi and Keyes squeezes it for the third out. No runs on no hits and no runners left.
Well that was a little too late to us any damn good. 9 outs to get 5 runs.
Jones is still out there to face Rupp in the bottom of the 7th. The first pitch is a fastball high for ball one. A fastball is in there at the knees to make it 1-1. Fist shot is flared to right and Mitchell makes the easy catch for the first out. Keyes up now. Fastball misses way up and out and it's 1-0. Fastball ties him up for strike one. Fastball popped back out of play for strike two. Slider hits Keyes in the foot and he's hobbled. We'll see if he stays in. Given his speed when he's healthy I can't imagine how slow Kevin Keyes with a foot injury could be. Rowe takes ball one inside. Texas trainer is out to look at Keyes. Fastball on the inside black makes it 1-1. High fastball is fouled back for strike two. Another high fastball is chased by Rowe and there are two outs after Ochinko catches the popup at first. Lovely, we're swinging at shit and taking pitches down the middle. Clark is up now to face Jones with two outs. Fastball is right there and taken for strike one. Fastball up and out for ball one. Down and in for ball two and it's 2-1. Another down and in fastball is ball three. Fastball down the middle is popped into left field. Catch is made for the third out. No runs on no hits and one runner left.
Plenty of pitches to hit and we're doing nothing. Six outs left.
Wood throws a fastball for a strike to Nola. Fastball misses outside to make it 1-1. Fastball fouled off for the second strike. Slider slapped down the first base line and gets past Belt for a double. First pitch to LeMahieu is a fastball tipped into Rupp's mitt for strike one. Fastball misses outside for ball one. Fastball is fouled to the right for strike two. Fastball well outside for ball two. Slider hit at Wood and ricochets off into foul ground. First and third with nobody out. This is what happens when you give shit away. All of a sudden two decently hit balls and the game is about to be finished off. Shinaberry is coming on for Wood after the shot to the leg. Some pitches and a fly ball to center gets the 10th run home. Strike then a ball. Another strike and it's 1-2. Ball away evens the count to Dean. 3-6-1 double play ends the inning.
6 runs down. 6 outs left. No life on the team.
Louis Coleman comes in for the Tigers to face Loy and Leon Landry comes into play left field. Fastball high for ball one. Or maybe not as there was a beach ball on the field. Fastball for strike one. Fastball fouled back for strike two. Slider misses for ball one. Another miss for ball two. Fastball right past Loy on the outside corner for the strikeout. Now the LSU informercial is in full swing as they are closing in on the championship. Fastball up and out for ball one to Torres. Fastball tipped for strike one. Fastball just outside for ball two. Fastball lined to the gap in right-center for a one-out double by Torres. He's been hitting the ball very solidly in the CWS and finally gets one into the gap. Fastball at the knees on the outside black for strike one to Tucker. Slider and Helenihi makes a diving play and throws him out for the second out of the inning. Nice play there and there are four outs left in the game for Texas. Fastball low makes it 1-0 to Belt. Takes something off but barely misses for ball two low and/or away. Fastball catches the inside corner at the knees and it's 2-1. Fastball grounded hard to first but Ochinko snags it and steps on first. No runs on one hit and one runner left.
Well, we hit it well finally and they made some plays. The fat lady is warming up.
Shinaberry starts the 9th with three balls. Curveball in for strike one. Breaking ball is crushed down the line for a home run. 11-4 LSU. "Fast"ball is strike one to Mitchell. Fister grounded to Shinaberry for the first out. After ball one to Mahtook they bring in Ruffin. Strike one swinging to Mahtook. High fastballs, please. Let's see if we figure it out when it doesn't matter anymore. Ball on a slider. Fastball at the belt fouled back. 2-2 now. Slider grounded to Torres and he makes the throw to first. Two outs. Ball one to Gibbs. Fastball fouled back. Slider tipped into Rupp for strike two. Base hit for Gibbs. Helenihi misses a fastball for strike one. Another fastball fouled off for strike two. Swinging strikeout for the third out. One run on two hits and one runner left.
Three outs left.
Multiple defensive moves by LSU as Coleman comes out to start the 9th. Fastball up and out for ball one. Fastball outside for ball two. Moldenhauer is turning his hips ridiculously early in his last two at-bats. Haven't noticed that before. Three balls after a low fastball. Ball four just misses somewhere. Maybe outside? Maybe high? Gibbs joins Rupp in the "what the hell is this ump looking at?" camp. Now Rupp is up. Fastball on the inside corner for strike one. Slider well outside for ball one. Fastball is fisted back into the screen for strike two. Fastball on the outside corner and Rupp can't believe it. That same pitch was a ball 60 seconds ago. Nice. Fastball piped to Keyes for strike one. Slider misses for ball one. Fastball on the outside corner fouled off and Keyes is hurting. Fastball 3 inches outside at the knees called strike three. This strike zone changes from pitch to pitch now as the ump is trying to get home. Rowe comes up with two outs. Fastball is piped for strike one. Hmm. Might want to swing at the only good pitch you're going to see. Slider missed for strike two. Slider misses for ball one. Swinging strike three on a slider. No runs on no hits and no runners left.
Oh well, we didn't deserve to win. We survived playing like garbage in the field for longer than we really should have. Congratulations to LSU. Our players are going to struggle with this one knowing that they didn't even make LSU earn it.