After a disappointing 5-2 loss to Jacksonville State on Tuesday, Auburn aims to bounce back in a three-game series against LSU starting Thursday.
Auburn took the series from Texas A&M last weekend, so an upset series win over LSU would mark back-to-back SEC series wins. Auburn only accomplished this feat once last season.
That will not be an easy task, however.
LSU is one of the best teams in SEC and one of the best in the country too. Led by a red-hot hitting trio of Cade Doughty, Dylan Crews and Jacob Berry, LSU sits at No. 13 in the country according to the D1 Baseball Top 25.
The Bayou Bengals are riding high with confidence as well. After dropping the series against Texas A&M, losing a midweek game to Louisiana Tech and faltering in the first game of the series against Florida, LSU has been playing motivated baseball.
LSU defeated Florida in its next two games on the road and waltzed its way to a 15-4 win over Louisiana-Monroe on Tuesday.
LSU is certainly an offensive-minded team. At 230 runs scored this season, LSU sits No. 9 in the country in that category. LSU also ranks inside the top-40 in batting average, top-20 in doubles and No. 11 in home runs.
The previous mentioned trio of Doughty, Crews and Berry has started all 25 games for LSU this season. All three have a batting average of .340 or above and as a team, LSU has six players hitting above .300.
Doughty has recorded 12 doubles already this season, good for the fifteenth most in the NCAA.
LSU's best slugger is redshirt sophomore Brayden Jobert. The Louisiana native leads the team with nine home runs and has a scorching slugging percentage of .718.
Against a team as good as LSU is offensively, Auburn will have it hands full.
Auburn pitchers must be on their best performance to keep up with LSU's hot offense. Auburn pitchers have allowed five or more runs in eight straight games including double-digit runs allowed in three of those.
Defensively, LSU leans on starting pitcher Blake Money. The 6-foot-7 sophomore started the season nearly flawless through his first three starts. But lately, his pitching has faltered.
Over his last three starts, Money has allowed 15 runs. The Florida Gators hit three home runs against Money in his last start.
Auburn has relied on home runs a lot this season - sitting at No. 72 in the nation in home runs - so the long bomb may likely be Auburn's main source of attack again. Auburn failed to record a home run in the loss to Jacksonville State and consequently scored just two runs.
Out of the bullpen, LSU has a strong trio in Samuel Dutton, Trent Vietmeier and Eric Reyzelman.
Dutton has an the team's best ERA at 0.69. Vietmeier has appeared in eight games for LSU with a 1.35 ERA and has recorded one win for the Tigers. Meanwhile, Reyzelman has the most relief appearances for LSU with 11 and has an ERA of 1.80 while allowing zero home runs this season.
Record wise, both teams are similar. LSU is 18-7 while Auburn is 17-8, and both teams have a 3-3 conference record and eye getting above .500.
The series starts Thursday in Baton Rogue, Louisiana at 6 p.m CT. The series opener will be broadcast on SEC Network while the two remaining games can be watched on SEC Network-plus.
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Jacob is a sophomore from Leeds, Alabama. This is his second year with The Auburn Plainsman.
Twitter: @JacobWaters_
