Kade Anderson wasn’t LSU’s starting pitcher for Sunday’s national title clincher.
But the left-hander was the tone-setter on Saturday night in Game 1, throwing a 130-pitch gem, and on Sunday in Omaha as the Tigers celebrated their 8th national championship in program history and 2nd in 3 years, Anderson was rewarded with the Most Outstanding Player award.
Anderson had no margin for error in the Championship Series opener against Coastal Carolina, and it turned out he didn’t need any wiggle room. LSU put up 1 run in the 1st inning on Saturday night, and Anderson made it hold up. He went the distance, allowing just 3 hits and working around 5 walks to go with 10 strikeouts in a 1-0 victory that put LSU in control of things against the Chanticleers going into Sunday’s Game 2.
Of Anderson’s astounding 130 pitches on Saturday night, 83 were strikes, as Anderson completely shut down Coastal Carolina while putting on a pitching show that won’t soon be forgotten in LSU baseball lore and College World Series lore.
While Anderson set the tone in the Championship Finals, he also set the tone for LSU in its entire run in Omaha on June 14 against Arkansas, tossing 7 innings of 1-run ball while allowing just 3 hits and walking 2. He struck out 7 Razorbacks in the 100-pitch effort, leading the Tigers to a 4-1 victory that immediately put LSU in great position for another national championship push.
On Sunday, when it was all over and LSU had completed an undefeated journey through this College World Series, Anderson was on top of the world and he was rewarded with the top individual honor.
Cory Nightingale, a former sportswriter and sports editor at the Miami Herald and Palm Beach Post, is a South Florida-based freelance writer who covers Alabama for SaturdayDownSouth.com.
