Although he appears to be mild-mannered on the outside, I believe LSU Tigers Head Baseball Coach Paul Mainieri is one of the fiercest competitors around. His affability and availability with the local press shouldn’t and doesn’t mask how much he wants to win during the game.
Having said that, I was very impressed with what LSU and Mainieri did on Saturday during their matchup with Army. Freshman Landon Marceaux was pitching extremely well and while a throwing error contributed to a pair of LSU runs, the Tigers bats were otherwise relatively quiet at The Box. Before the top of every 3rd inning, LSU always thanks veterans or people who have served their country. In this case, the entire LSU team shook hands with all of the Cadets from West Point. Sort of a ‘pay it forward’ Thank You, if you will.
Neat scene. Before the top of the 3rd, #LSU always thanks veterans for their service. Today, they thanked the entire team from West Point. #Army pic.twitter.com/GWYueQJFzR
— David Schultz (@Schultzycast) February 16, 2019
Following what ended up being an exciting Tigers victory on a 3-run HR from freshman Cade Beloso, Mainieri was effusive in his praise of Army. How they are going to sacrifice themselves so the rest of us can live the lives we enjoy even before telling everyone how tough a team they are. I throughly believe had LSU come up short, those still would’ve been the first words out of Mainieri’s mouth after the game.
Sometimes, respect off the field, outshines the results on the field. Well done LSU. Well done.