LSU pitching great Ben McDonald is a busy man. In addition to the 45 or so college baseball games he does on television during the season, he also calls about 85 Baltimore Orioles games on TV, the team that made him the overall No. 1 pick in the 1989 major league draft.
This week, like his former college team, McDonald is in Omaha, Nebraska, calling games on the day shift in the College World Series for ESPN. He generously found a few moments to talk about LSU, pitcher Paul Skenes, and that 34-year old strike out record of his that is now in serious jeopardy:
You had 202 strikeouts in 1989, still a Southeastern Conference record. Skenes goes into the College World Series with 188 strikeouts, fifth-most in a season by an SEC pitcher. What chance do you give him to break it and how do you feel about that?
“It’s stood for a long time. We all knew it would take a special person to approach it. David Price came close (194 in 2007 at Vanderbilt). Skenes is about as special as it gets. It’s been fun to watch him. I knew when I first saw him in February. After three or four starts I thought if he’s healthy he’s got a chance to break it. I’ve said that if LSU gets to Omaha and he breaks it, that it’s meant to be. I hope he gets a couple, maybe three starts here. That would mean LSU is in the championship series and is playing for a national title.”
You said Skenes was a much different pitcher from the one you saw last year at Air Force. How is he different?
“The first thing that jumped out at me was his velocity. This time last year, Paul was predicted to be an early second/late first-round pick. The reason was his fastball at Air Force last year averaged 93 mph. His size makes him a prospect for sure. When I saw him this year he was hitting 100, 101 mph in his first start of year. I said, ‘Wait a minute, this is not the same dude I saw before.’ He’s averaging 98.5 mph on his fastball this year. That doesn’t happen very often. Hunter Greene (Cincinnati Reds) is the only starting pitcher in the majors doing that. And the shape of his breaking ball was totally different. That’s him and (pitching coach) Wes Johnson joining the sweeping slider craze that everyone is doing. He’s got his body in better shape. And he’s not doing Air Force things anymore. He doesn’t have to get up at 5:30 a.m. or be a two-way player. He’s focused strictly on baseball. Between LSU’s weight program and getting mechanically cleaned up with Wes, his velo took a phenomenal jump.”
There are those who say once Skenes is drafted in July, he could be playing in the majors by the end of the season. Is that fair?
“I’m the first one who said it. I said you could plug him in a (major league) bullpen right now. I know what it like to be in the major leagues at 21 right out of college. Now he’s got things to work on. But with his fastball and slider, you could plug him into a bullpen right now and not worry about it. The thing that separates him is he’s a strike thrower. Ben Joyce from Tennessee threw 105 mph last year, but you didn’t always know where it was going. Of course, he’s in the big leagues now (with the Los Angeles Angels), but Skenes has got elite command. His combination of power and precision is very special.”
People talk about LSU outfielder Dylan Crews being the No. 1 overall pick by the Pittsburgh Pirates and Skenes going second to the Washington Nationals. Do you think that’s how it’s going to be?
“It depends what the Pirates and Nationals want to do. Paul Skenes, to me, could well be the number one pick. It depends on how much money do they want to pay.”
What do you think of LSU’s chances to win that long-sought after seventh College World Series title?
“It’s hard to say LSU is not one of best teams. They were ranked number one more than anyone. They’ve faced adversity. The good news is they’re playing as well as they have all year long. I have a good feeling about LSU, though Tennessee definitely has the arms.”
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