Jump’s scoreless seven innings help LSU take game one of the series.
LSU starting pitcher Gage Jump threw seven scoreless innings while only allowing two hits while striking out six batters in LSU’s 5-0 win over Auburn.
Jump (4-1) has very high standards when it comes to his on-the-mound performances and tonight he didn’t feel great pitching-wise.
“From a stuff standpoint, I didn’t feel amazing. But at this point, my job is to put up zeroes and me and Christian (Little) did a pretty good job of it,” Jump said.
However, LSU head coach Jay Johnson had higher praise for Jump’s performance than Jump himself.
“Tonight, nobody around the country pitched better than that,” coach Jay Johnson said about Jump’s performance. “That’s a huge lift for our team and I’m super proud of him. It’s been a long time coming, and I’m the least surprised person in the country with what I’ve seen [from him] in the past two weeks.”
Jump has now pitched 14.0 scoreless innings in his last two outings. During that span, he’s only allowed one run on five hits with a walk and 20 strikeouts.
LSU relief pitcher Christian Little came in for Jump in the eighth inning and looked fantastic as well. Little did not allow a single hit or walk in the final two innings and struck out four of the six batters he faced.
After the first three innings went without either team scoring, LSU finally broke through when third baseman Tommy White hit a solo home run to give the Tigers a 1-0 lead at the end of the fourth inning. White’s homer was his 16th of the year.
In the fifth inning, LSU designated hitter Hayden Travinski would record a solo home run of his own to give the Tigers a 2-0 lead. Travinski’s solo blast was his 13th of the season.
After neither team scored in the sixth inning, LSU would score three runs in the seventh to seal the game.
On a 2-2 count with two outs, LSU catcher Alex Milazzo came up with a clutch two-run double to extend LSU’s lead to 4-0.
LSU right fielder Ashton Larson’s RBI single would later send Milazzo home, accounting for the final margin.