March 30, 2017
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THE WIZARDRY OF OS
Assistant Basketball Coach and Head Swimming Coach at Central High
Normally, I am the guy who watches LSU baseball struggle at some point in the season and tells everyone to relax. This time, I am not so sure. There are many issues everyone has seen to this point and let’s rate them on the panic-meter.
If you are not familiar with the panic-meter, let me familiarize you with the levels. The first level is, “the Titanic is unsinkable.” The second level is, “maybe we should avoid the iceberg.” The third level is, “woman and children first.”
Issue #1: LSU has lost three midweek games already. The first loss to UNO was not a big deal. That early in the year the coaches need to give all pitchers an opportunity to see what they can do in a real game. Sometimes that leads to a loss and it is okay. If the next two were spread out or LSU lost because of pitching, I would call this level one. But LSU lost those games because the offense could not generate runs (in the second UNO game over 15 innings), and that is why I classify these losses as a level two. (Up to level 3, if LSU does not come back and beat Tulane)
Issue #2: Alex Lange’s ERA is over 4.00. Of course it is all about control with pitchers, but I believe it goes a little beyond that for Lange. His curveball bites so much that sometimes it is hard to throw for a strike. If teams are able to layoff, then they sit on fastballs early in the count when he is trying to get ahead. In my opinion, I think the changeup is a huge pitch for him the rest of the year. If he can just throw a few early in counts, especially early in games, I think it will make a huge difference. Hopefully Lange has his two bad outings for the year out of the way. Until Lange puts 3-4 quality starts together in a row, Lange is another level two on the panic-meter.
Issue #3: The injuries to the pitching staff has LSU relying on a bunch of freshman. Norman and Newman have pitched a ton of innings for LSU. The Tigers are counting on Beck, Peterson, Hess, and other inexperienced pitchers to pick up the slack. The great news is they have ability and will continue to grow. By the end of the year, they will be ready. This is a level one issue. Relax Tiger fans and celebrate LSU having a third and fourth starter that will continue to get better. We may need them in the post season.
Issue #4: The Georgia series. What! What? LSU swept the Georgia series. I know, but look closer. Georgia pitching was terrible at times, and as a result they gave away scoring opportunities and LSU did not take advantage. I don’t feel like looking up the stat, but LSU did not produce consistently with the bases loaded or with a runner on third and less than two outs. It didn’t make a difference in winning or losing in that series, but it did cost LSU at Florida. LSU needs to do a better job of manufacturing runs without getting 3 hits in a row, and that goes back to issue #1.
Issue 4 is not really the Georgia series, though. The issue is LSU generating offense. At the beginning of the year, I loved the top of the lineup. There was constant pressure, lots of ground balls, and well executed hit and runs. I thought Freeman was the best leadoff hitter. I loved a lefty like Duplantis in the two hole. Since Robertson has a little pop in the bat, I was a fan of him hitting third. I understand the reasoning behind making the changes. Sometimes a manager has to keep things fresh.
But, it has led to my only level 3 concern for this team, and that is protection for Deichmann. I don’t care what any of the freshman do, no coach is going to worry about a freshman compared to Deichmann and they are still freshman. At some point, I think Mainieri will have to look at Freeman, Duplantis, Deichmann, and Robertson as a non- traditional cleanup hitter.
Issue #5: LSU doesn’t have a second leadoff hitter. Hitting Pap ninth is not the answer no matter how many grand slams he hits. LSU will have a great hitter at the top of the order all year and they can’t continue to come up with nobody on base so often. I think Josh Smith would be the perfect nine hole hitter. He gets on base, he is patient, and has good speed. LSU needs to lineup to turn over more often to get to the big 4. I think Mainieri will do something soon, and that is the reason I will leave this issue at level 2 on the panic-meter, instead of a three.
There has never been a baseball season when there isn’t time for a little panic. It is still a long baseball season, and LSU is not clicking on all cylinders. Stay on alert Tiger fans, but don’t panic. LSU showed a lot of guts winning on Sunday and the manner in which they won was impressive. LSU baseball is still very good, just not consistent at the present time.
Having covered all those issues, I’ll make this prediction. At the end of the year, LSU will go as far as Freeman, Robertson, Duplantis, and Deichmann take them.
HEY REF
How many Saints fans out there feel secure in the thought their NFL franchise won’t move out of the “Big Easy”? The one thing that can best describe these people is a short saying made famous long ago by a circus owner when he was quoted saying “There’s a fool born every minute”. BOOM! BANG! Did I hit a nerve with many of you? Admit it; you’re angry and upset that I would write such an untruth about you. But at the end of the day there does ring a bit of truth to my comparison of those that don’t understand the world of professional sports revolves around the ALMIGHTY DOLLAR!
Do I need to write what talks and what walks? Of course not since those of you calling yourself a fan of the NFL understand the only thing you need to get your way in those owner’s meetings is a full wallet. We’ve seen the truth once again as the Oakland Raiders were ALLOWED to pack up and move to Las Vegas in a vote of 31 in favor of the move and only Miami giving it a thumbs down. Those 31 owners are well aware when they are ready to move on to greener pastures that by voting not to put up an obstacle in past requests to move only makes it a bit easier for them to line up the U-Haul trucks and get themselves “out of Dodge”.
This can’t come to any surprise since it was Al Davis himself, the former owner of the Raiders that started this movement of franchises whenever a team, city or state balks at paying higher and higher ransom along with building a MULTI-BILLION dollar stadium. Owners need and want to “one-up” each other because their egos’ are bigger than a 747. They can’t begin to enjoy a game unless they’re sitting in multi-level, luxurious suites and everyone is telling them what a genius they are. In other words they thrive off of idiots kissing their collective asses.
What better way is there than to top off the headlines of the Raider’s move to Vegas then to have our own local dumb-dumb, Nick Underhill, of the Advocate boldly proclaim “there’s no reason to think Saints will leave N. O.”. Evidently he doesn’t understand American business and American GREED! He goes on quoting Saints’ president Dennis Lauscha that fears of a Saints move out of Louisiana to be unfounded. Well, then, tell me oh great one why as a Saints fan I don’t have to worry my team will search out then accept a move to just about any city that will build me a BILLION DOLLAR STADIUM.
He calls any thought of the Saints leaving as faulty thinking and according to him, it’s insulting! Are you kidding me? He goes on heaping praises on Tom Benson and the state; i.e. our beloved legislature. So let’s look back just a few years starting with the damages from hurricane Katrina. Well for starts good olé boy Tommy Benson wanting to start calling San Antonio home. It took promises of millions to keep him from asking for an emergency owners meeting and a vote on traveling to another city and state.
Forbes magazine writes “Benson became known as the billionaire betting on a struggling state, now the richest man in Louisiana worth $1.2 BILLION”. Louisiana is giving Benson through STATE SUBSIDIES AN ESTIMATED $392 million through 2025. He gets millions from the state even though the PROFIT he’s making from the Saints PER YEAR is a mere $31 million dollars. On top of the $31 million in PROFITS he gets from the Saints Louisiana will pay Benson $198 million in increased revenue from the Super Dome. Then the state is on the hook for $142 million in rental payments to Benson from rent on properties he owns. Louisiana will pay Benson a $10 million dollar bonus if New Orleans hosts a Super Bowl along with another small payment of $2.6 million in tax breaks.
But what I find amazing is on top of all that money Benson gets from the state he’ll also receive another $40 million from private rental payments from a “tower” building he bought AS PART OF THE DEAL. I guess this is just a little thing nobody has written about and once again the state is bound to pay the $40 million if renters leave “HIS TOWER”. I guess Louisiana has co-signed a $40 million dollar loan if rental income doesn’t bring in that additional $40 million.
And what happens when the state can’t pay the monies of this so called agreement? Simple; the STATE OF LOUISIANA HAS TO BORROW THE MONEY TO PAY BENSON. These aren’t new problems that just came up, oh no! As far back as ‘05 the state has found it hard to find the monies it’s bound to pay Benson. It was reported in ’05 the state once again had to borrow money to pay Benson. We can’t find the money to buy toilet paper to keep our butts clean yet we can give a BILLIONAIRE MILLIONS cause we likes football.
SO the next time any New Orleans Saints Official says to be calm there’s no way the club will move out of Louisiana ask “COULD ANY OTHER STATE BE SO STUPID TO GIVE BILLIONAIRES AND MILLIONAIRES THE COMBINATION TO THE STATE VAULT? Probably not but then again YOU CAN’T FIX STUPID!!
Till next week…
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