Speaker 1: Ragon Cagen's baseball seas their twenty twenty six campaign come
to an end in the Starkville Regional. Let's recap it
here on Raging Rundown's. Good ladies and gentlemen, and welcome
to another episode of Raging Rundown, the show where you
will know all things U O Sports. I'm your guy,
JaMarcus Fitzpatrick, but you know you can always call me fits.
And on today's episode we will be talking about Louisiana
baseball and putting a bow on the season that was
for the Raging Cagens as they fall in the Starkville
Regional to the host of Mississippi State. But before we
get into that, let's look back at the Sunday that
they had to play the game. First. At the beginning
of the day, they had to play against Cincinnati just
to make it to the regional final. The Cajuns would
go down two to nothing to the Bearcats. In the
first inning, they would go down to to nothing. Drew
Marco had a response in the bottom of the second
with a solo home run. After that, Blade Rodriguez had
an RBI on a fielder's choice situation where Donovan Lasal
would be able to score. Right after that, Mark Collins
hits an RBI single and the Cajuns are up three
to two. They would later extend their lead in the
bottom of the third to five to two, as Donovan
Lasal hit one of two home runs that he had
in this contest. So now it's five to two Cincinnati.
We knew how powerful their bets were. They come back
with a haymaker. They hit a two run bomb, they
make it five four. Eventually as we go down to
the top of the six they would tie it at
five apiece, and then they went back in front and
go up six to five going into the sixth inning.
The bottom of the six once again Donovi Lasu comes
with a response. He hits his second home run, a
solo bomb. I believe it was this twelfth of the
season that ties it up at six apiece, and then
the Cajuns would take the lead. In the bottom of
the sixth, Blais Reverrigquez comes up with another RBI, this
time on a single, and it is seven to six
at that point, and after that they would just be
able to battle through this one and hold on to
be able to win it eight to six. Coke Brown
gave you an insurance run in the bottom of the seventh,
and from there they were able to hold off the
bear Catcher as they continue to be scrappy since he
goes line out, flyout, lineout on the top of the eighth,
and then in the night they go fly out, strike out,
They get a single up the middle, Uo has a
mountain visit, they have a single, and then they have
a groundout to end the game. Cajuns win it eight
to six, and it was really just a sign of
how resilient this team was and how willing they were
to not back down and not quit. Andrewman was a
perfect example of that. He gets the start in this one,
his final collegiate start. He goes five innings, he allows
three hits and four earned runs. He strikes out eight
batters and draws ninety eight pitches. So he just kept
chipping away, finding a way to battle in this one,
and offensively, they gave him run support to make sure
that even though he gave up runs and even though
Cincinnati got good hits and good contact against him, they
were able to pull this. When Ale Tyler Papenbrock was
able to get the win and slam the door shut
as he went four innings, allowing four hits, one earned
run on seventy seven total pitches, which I think may be,
if not a season high for him, it may have
been one of his longer outings, which we've talked about before.
That's exactly what the Cagens needed because of the lack
of depth that they had out of the bullpen, which
we're going to get into that now. Talking about the
regional final that the Cagns played in against Mississippi State,
and it was a long night, to say the least,
this game, I want to say, in right around four hours.
The final out I think was recorded a little bit
after eleven o'clock. And the team I would not say
was tired, but you could sense the fatigue out of
the bullpen. You are were about as just as then
as you could have possibly been. You've played eleven games
and thirteen days up until that point, and you played
seven games and games in six days during the Sunbeill
Conference tournament just to make it to a regional and
this is where that where and tear finally reared as
ugly head in the regional final agains Mississippi State. So
the Cajuns they bust back to the hotel, and we
were told that they would shower up, change uniforms and
come back. I look across the field, they've changed dugouts
and we're in the same white uniforms that they wore
earlier in the day. Blaze Rodriguez, his was basically completely
brown and had tip to him. Also on the defensive play,
I forgot to mention that he had a great day
at the plate, but he also had some huge diff
defensive plays like some sports in the top ten defensive
plays that he had in that matchup, And like I said,
that was just a sign of how resilience some of
those guys had been and how they had that no
quit attitude. He was two for four, two RBI. Donovolosal
was three for four and had three RBI. So those
were kind of your main guys that stood out in
the win over Cincinnati. But then you get to the
night game against Mississippi State, and right out of the gate,
it gets to be a home run party. The Bulldogs
that is, would score three solo home runs between the
first and second inning. They would take a three nothing lead,
and then in the top of the or excuse me,
the bottom of the third because they had the Cajun's
batting as the home team in this one. Noah Lewis
would hit a solo home run in the bottom of
the third inning. Huge moment for the young freshman because
he's not a power hitter, so that was just his
third home run of the season, but to see him
be able to get that one was big in that moment,
and you felt like it was a window of opportunity
where if the Cajuns could have gotten things going, because
by no means were the bats not in a position
where they couldn't hit. They got thirteen hits on Mississippi State,
but they just weren't able to drive in some of
the runs. I'll look back to see how many they
left on base, but I know that it was quite
a few guys that they left on base. We get
to the fourth inning and we see Mississippi State just
extend their lead. They go up four to nothing after
an RBI single, five or excuse me, four to one
after an RBI single, five to one after another RBI single,
and then a two run bomb makes it seven to one,
and the fifth they would extend it to eight to
one after an RBI single and then a double steal
kind of happens where the Kajuns are able to score
another run that makes it eight to two. Cole Brown
would hit a solo home run to make it eight
to three in the bottom of the sixth, and then
from there that's when the floodgates started to open up
even more, as the Bulldogs had a five spot in
the seventh, a fourth spot in the eighth, and they
also had a fourth spot there in the fourth, and
they just continued to run away with things. The lead
a mass scene and ballooning to as large as nineteen
to five with that being the final score. Even a
Grand Slam happening, I think in the in the in
the top of the ninth, if I'm not mistaken, it
was one of those instances that I want, Yeah, in
the top of the ninth, the Grand Slam happens. And
it was just a long night. It was absolutely long night,
and you could tell that these guys were worn out.
They were in a position where they just simply ran
out of bullets in this one, you know, looking at
the amount of times that guys were left on base,
you had eleven base runners that you left on. Mark
Collins was left on four times. Marco was left on
three times. Donavolasu and Madix Mendino will both left on twice,
and if I'm not mistaken, there was an instance where
they left the bases loaded in this one. So that
was something that had happened quite a few times, not
just in this postseason, but throughout the season, was stranding
base runners in key situations. And you know, once again
you combine that with the pitching depth being just worn
down at this point, it was a recipe for disaster.
As Mississippi State took advantage of it fully, the Cages
would end up pitching nine guys. Saw your crew it
got the start, but he only lasted one in a
third inning. After that, Ty Roman goes two and a third.
They are to let goes two in a third. Heaton
Pearson does not last an inning, even through Landon Victorian
in there at that point, they're just putting arms out there,
letting guys get opportunities. Landon Victorian goes an inning called
Flannigan goes two thirds him Ryland does not last in
any He throws eleven pitches. Your carter throws eleven pitches
and last two thirds. And Andrew Herman in a kind
of Kodek moments or a hallmark type of moment, gets
a final bow as he goes to third innings and
tosses ninety or excuse me, twenty three pitches. He threw
ninety eight earlier in the day, so well over one
hundred in that same day for the lefty. I think
even Jose Torres got in and got his final at
bat into a groundout. So you saw a lot of
fight in this team. But like I said, the arms
out of their bullpen were just worn down at this
point and the battle that they had to face was
just an uphill climb. Mississippi State was well rested and
you could tell by the way that they were able
to dominate this one. Mississippi State ends up scoring nineteen
runs on twenty hits, and like I said, you have
to tip your cap to them. They were a well
battle tested team and the way that they were able
to compete throughout this regional they did not lose a
single one and everyone one of the games that they
played in they dominated them. So kudos to the Bulldogs
for making it to the super Regional. They will take
on Georgia this next weekend, and now Louisiana will have
to look ahead towards the future and try to see
what they can do to not just be able to
get back to a regional, but potentially be able to
host one. Head coach Mad Diggs actually talk about that
in post game, and we're gonna break down some of
what he said when we return right here on Raging Rundown. Hey, guys,
thank you so much for tuning into another episode of
Raging Rundown. We're gonna get back into the action in
just a second, but before we do, if you're watching
this video, please do me a favor. Like it, share it,
and leave a comment down below, but most importantly, make
sure you're subscribed to the channel. If you're listening, please
follow the podcast feed, rate the show, and leave us
a review, because that's gonna help us get in front
of more Raging Cajun fans just like yourself. So, the
twenty twenty sixth season is officially over for Louisiana Baseball,
and now you have to look towards the future. The
Transfer Portal has already come into effect. Jas Lecava has
announced his intentions to enter the portal an outfielder for
you and Cohen Alfonso A Picture has already announced his
departure from the program as well. Both of those guys
were not with you here in Starkville. So you've lost
two guys to the Portal. Murphy Brooks announced that he
would medically retire. So those are three guys that you
no longer have on your team. And then you're gonna
lose five seniors. So when we're looking at your roster,
you've got two cornerstone guys and Jose Torres and Andrew
Herman and also Liamede. So three cornerstone guys that have
been a part of this program and have seen it.
Liamede obviously being there all four, and then Jose and
Andrew Herman are Herman, I'm hearing Coach Diggs say it
in my head, and there was actually a time when
I was saying his last name like that. But Andrew Herman,
those were two guys that transferred into the program as well,
Tyler Papenbrock Giberto Hernandez as well. So you're gonna lose
those five guys. That's what's gonna be leaving your program.
You've lost three, two to the Portal and then one
to a medical retirement. So you're down eight guys, and
I'm not sure if Coach Diggs was pointing to Cody
Brash going into the MLB Draft, but I remember hearing
him correctly. He said something about having to replace Cody Brash,
So I'm assuming in that moment. I have not confirmed
it with Cody yet, but I will reach out to
him just to see if he does plan on having
the intentions to enter the MLB Draft and if he
gets selected, would he go ahead and take that opportunity
to go to the big leagues. So you're talking about
eight guys and potentially nine being out of the mix.
So with that in mind, you would have twenty four
guys coming back. Obviously, the big thing that you're gonna
want to prioritize is the big four in your freshman class.
Finding way to retain those guys. We know what that means.
It's June first. The transfer portal is officially open and
it will stay open for a thirty day window and
close on June thirtieth. So the team will have to
be able to hold the rope and find a way
to retain those guys. We're talking about catcher Colt Brown,
We're talking about picture Saw your pruit. We're talking about
short stop Blaze Rodriguez, who was phenomenal throughout this regional
and was the long Cajun to be named All Regional,
and then outfielder Noah Lewis. All of those guys were
all summed ult freshman team members and they will be
foundational pieces to the success of what you can have
toward the future. Head coach Matt Diggs said, and post
how you know, you combine what they have would what
they could potentially have come in And I'm not exactly
sure about the signing class that they have. I know
one of them is picture Evan Vincent because he's from
Turlin's Catholic in the viewing area that I obviously cover.
But he mentioned that he believes that what they have
coming back, if they're able to retain the core group
of these guys, he believes that this team is not
just capable of making the original but hosting one n
laugh yette, and he said that the main thing is
going to be able to have and develop a lot
of pitching depth. You know, you were in a lot
of instances where you had to lean on maybe about
four or five guys out of your bullpen and that
finally caught up to you because of the number of
games that you were playing in such a short amount
of time. So the Big four is going to be
a huge priority for you. Out of that freshman class,
You're going to have guys like Mark Collins and Owen
gal to be able to be huge pieces for you.
Out of that sophomore class you talk about in your
junior class, Donovan la South, we saw how big he was.
He was your home run leader. Drew Marco had big
moments throughout the season, Maddix Mendino being in and out
of the lineup and coming up big and also playing
on the defensive end, out in the outfield and being
interchangeable for you with the way that he produced. And
then a person that we did not see this season,
but we know what he is capable of whenever he's healthy,
and that's picture Chase Morgan. It's gonna be key to
see if, first of all, if he's gonna be available
going into what would be his senior season, and how
productive they can be able to have him to be.
That's gonna be the main thing that we're gonna have
to see. Obviously, you're gonna have to go and recruit
your butt off. You're gonna have to dip your hand
into the portal and find out what guys are going
to be the same type of guys that you need.
You saw in post if you see it uploaded. At
this point, I haven't had time to be able to
chop it up. Got back to the room after twelve
and stayed up to two o'clock to get stuff done
for my job at KTC, so I have not had
an opportunity to chop up any of the sound bites.
But if you went back and watched it, there were
moments in there where it was a little bit of
cheer jerking moments. Andrew and Liamede were at the mic.
They talked about how much coach Diggs meant to him
to them, and then he turned around and said, last
year when everyone was quitting on him, those guys didn't quit,
and he talked about how much they meant to him,
and then in his final statement he talked about you know,
the portal and all of those things like that, and
said that if the guys that are on this team
are going to be willing enough to bet on themselves
and be like the Cale Devarges and the lp Linger
Evans and the Julian Bronx and the Carson Rocketfords, and
he listed all of those guys, and you could tell
that he's very passionate about making sure that they get
the right guys into this program that believe not just
in the vision of being a quality team that wins
forty one games forty plus games in a season, but
a team that can go to Omaha. And he truly
believes that. And I would say to you that if
they can add some quality arms, they can get Chase
Morgan back on top of getting a high level of retention,
I can see this being a very very dangerous team
in twenty twenty seven. That is to be seen. The
next step now will be keeping eyes on what happens
to the transfer portal. What guys do you be able
are you able to bring in? Well, there'll be guys
that will depart from the program we will see in
the coming weeks. Obviously we will be talking about it
right here on Raging Rundown as things transpire over the
next month. And then obviously you have the MLB Draft
coming up in July, and we'll see what guys in
the Vermilion in White will be selected in whether or
not they will decide to return to the program. So
that's going to wrap up this episode of Raging Rundown.
If you've made it to this point in the episode,
thank you so much. Please do me a favor. Please
like the video shared and leave a comment down below.
But most importantly, make sure you subscribe to the channel.
If you're listening, follow the podcast feed, rate the show,
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that's going to help us get in front of more
raging Cajun fans. Just like yourself. I'm your guys, You're
Marcus Fitzpatrick. We'll see you guys next time.