The LSU Tigers baseball team has had a year to forget in 2026, and it's almost behind them as this weekend's series against the Florida Gators is the final series of the regular season.
The Tigers are fresh off being swept by the Georgia Bulldogs, now 29-24 on the year, and had no midweek game this time to build back some confidence. Instead, they'll now play host to the Top-10 Gators in a series they are not expected to win.
While winning this series would be great, it feels like the only chance this team has to make the postseason is with a miracle run in the SEC tournament. It's unlikely, but their path to better baseball can still start this weekend.
Here are the pitching matchups to expect to see in this series:
Game 1
LSU: TBA
Season Stats: TBA
While no one has been announced for this spot, it will likely be Casan Evans, who just recently returned from injury. Evans has a 5.96 ERA and has not lived up to very high expectations, but could still possibly go out on a high note before his junior campaign.
Florida: RHP Aidan King
Season Stats: 7-2, 2.19 ERA, 74.0 IP, 77 Ks, 16 BBs
King has been one of the best pitchers in the sport and could win the SEC Pitcher of the Year honors. He just rarely makes mistakes and has only allowed five home runs in 147.1 innings of work in college. This will be a tough task for a wildly inconsistent LSU offense.
Game 2
LSU: RHP Marcos Paz
Season Stats: 1-2, 8.28 ERA, 25.0 IP, 35 Ks, 23 BBs
Paz has been all over the place since being made a starter a couple of weekends ago. He dominated the South Carolina Gamecocks, but gave up 7 runs in 1.1 innings of work. These types of growing pains are expected out of true freshmen, though. There is a lot to be excited about for the future.
Florida: RHP Liam Peterson
Season Stats: 1-5, 4.28 ERA, 67.1 IP, 88 Ks, 34 BBs
Peterson has allowed at least four earned runs in each of his last three outings. The Tigers must capitalize on that quickly in this game to continue to shake his confidence, especially with such an unproven pitcher on the mound themselves.
Game 3
LSU: RHP Zac Cowan
Season Stats: 3-3, 4.97 ERA, 38.0 IP, 46 Ks, 12 BBs
It will be nice for Cowan to be able to close out his time in Baton Rouge as a starter. He was an important piece to last year's run out of the bullpen, but couldn't find the same success this season, like much of the team.
Florida: RHP Russell Sandefer
Season Stats: 3-2, 4.30 ERA, 46.0 IP, 50 Ks, 16 BBs
Sandefer is a steady, solid option. He's only allowed four or more runs twice this season, and the team still ended up winning both of those games. He won't overwhelm, but can get out of jams.
