The LSU Tigers came into this season as the defending national champions. After many weeks of conference play, LSU has struggled tremendously, resulting in them dropping out of the top 25.
For any team, it would be difficult to replace guys like Dylan Crews and Paul Skenes, which is what LSU needed to do. They were able to pick up Luke Holman out of the transfer portal, who has been a top 5 pitcher in the SEC. Offensively though, the Tigers failed to replace Crews and it is showing.
This caused them to get off to a slow start in conference play as they lost five straight series and winning only three games. This included being swept by Arkansas and Tennessee.
After getting swept by Tennessee, LSU got back on track with a midweek win against New Orleans. Then they traveled to Missouri and won two out of three, which was their first conference series win of the season. Then they hosted Auburn and won two out of three. This improved their conference record to 7-14.
The Tigers were hot against the two teams with the worst records in the SEC. This led up to a series against the number one ranked Texas A&M Aggies. LSU hosted them for a three-game series and won the first two games, but lost the third. This series win was huge for the Tigers as it marked three straight conference series wins in a row.
A main reason of the success has been because top draft prospect, Tommy White, has gotten hot at the plate. Since April 1st, White has a batting average of .341 with 10 home runs and 26 runs batted in. During the beginning of the season, White was not hitting for much power. He did go on a stretch against Mississippi State where he hit a home run in three straight games, but aside from that, he has not been hitting as well as he did in 2023.
White built his name with his power numbers by hitting 27 home runs and having a .757 slugging percentage in his freshman season at NC State. He followed that by transferring to LSU and hit 24 home runs with 105 runs batted in and had a .725 slugging percentage.
This season, White has not hit for as much power as usual. He does have 19 home runs already, but his slugging percentage is only at .642. Other than his home runs, his only other extra base hits have come from six doubles.
If Tommy White continues to swing a hot bat, then LSU has a chance to do damage in the playoffs. The Tigers currently would be an 11 or 12 seed in the SEC Tournament, but with their hot streak of three straight conference series wins in a row, they have a chance to pass a few teams in the seeding. Their conference record currently sits at 9-15 and they have two more series to play. They will face off against Alabama and Ole Miss for a three-game series.
Keep an eye out for the LSU Tigers for these next two weeks before the postseason begins. They are hot right now and with Tommy White being a big contributor to their success, they have a chance to continue to stay hot going into the SEC Tournament.