Six LSU Tigers were selected on day three of the major league baseball draft, including Antoine Duplantis, who was picked in the 19th round by the Cleveland Indians. Duplantis has one year of eligibility left and could return for his senior season after he was drafted so low.

Right-handed starting pitcher Zack Hess could also be back as his name wasn’t called until the 34th round by Atlanta. Zach Watson is also likely to return after he was picked in the last round by Boston.

The three others Tigers drafted yesterday may have played their last game at LSU. Cam Sanders and Jake Slaughter were both picked by the Chicago Cubs. Catcher Hunter Feduccia was selected in the 12th round by the Dodgers.

Other notable selections, Southeastern Louisiana pitcher Josh Green was picked by the Arizona Diamondbacks. Seatttle selected McNeese right-hander Grant Anderson in the 21st round and Ragin Cajuns left-hander Colten Schmidt went in the 23rd round to the Colorado Rockies.

Jeff Duncan from the Times-Picayune reports that former Saints offensive tackle Zach Strief has emerged as a strong and viable candidate to succeed Jim Henderson as the Voice of the Saints. Strief has limited broadcasting experience, but served as an analyst on WWL’s coverage of this year’s NFL draft.

This weekend it will be a Free Fishing weekend across Louisiana, which means you don’t need a license to drop a line in state waters. Rene LeBreton with the Lousiaina Department of Wildlife and Fisheries says they have the free fishing weekend now, so a novice fisherman who enjoys the experience, will hopefully purchase a license and they would have it for more than a year….
cut 8 (11) “…in June”

Golden State took a commanding three games to nothing lead in the NBA Finals after beating Cleveland 110-102.

Today is the third and final day of the Major League Baseball Draft and the LSU program has not been hit too hard, when it comes to draft-eligible sophomores and juniors taken. In fact the only Tiger picked so far, is left-hander Nick Bush, who was selected by the Colorado Rockies in the eighth round. Draft-eligible sophomores Zack Hess and Zach Watson were not selected in the first 10 rounds and the same goes for junior outfielder Antoine Duplantis of Lafayette.

The Ragin Cajuns had three pitchers taken, Logan Harris in the third round to the As, and in the ninth round right-handers Logan Stoelke and Nick Lee were selected. Stoelke goes to the Pirates and Rays drafted Lee.

Northwestern State’s David Fry went in the 7th round to the Milwaukee Brewers.

Southeastern Louisiana has promoted Andew Gipson to associate head coach and pitching coach. The Alabama native has spent the past four seasons as an assistant at SLU.

The Super Regional series are set in the NCAA Baseball Tournament. Three of the eight match-ups feature SEC teams battling each other for the right to go to Omaha. In Nasvhille, Vanderbilt will host Mississippi State in a best of three series that starts Friday. Auburn will visit top-seeded Florida. The series in Gainesville begins Saturday. South Carolina is at Arkansas for a Super Regional series that starts Saturday.

Florida State won the Women’s College World Series las tnight with an eight to three win over Washington. It’s the first national title in softball for the Seminoles who started by losing their first game in Oklahoma City.

Tonight is Game 3 of the NBA Finals in Cleveland. The Cavs are down two games to none, they also trailed in their series against the Celtics and Pacers this season.

Former New Orleans Pelicans head coach Monty Williams has reportedly returned to coaching as he’ll serve as the 76ers lead assistant. Williams has been working in the front office for the Spurs. He was the Oklahoma City Thunder’s associate head coach, but left the bench after his wife was killed in a car accident in February 2016.

The only LSU player selected during day two of the Major League Baseball Draft is sophomore left-hander Nick Bush who was drafted in the eight round by the Colorado Rockies. Bush boasted an ERA of 3.40 in 47.2 innings this past season.

No LSU baseball players were selected in the first seven rounds of the Major League Baseball Draft, which is good news for Coach Paul Mainieri. Zack Hess, Zach Watson and Antoine Duplantis are draft eligible and if they were selected high enough and received a big enough signing bonus, they may decide to end their college career and play professional baseball.

An LSU signee was drafted in the first round last night. Shortstop Brice Turang of California was selected with the 21st overall pick by the Milwaukee Brewers. It was considered a long shot that Turang would end up on LSU’s campus. He’s been compared to former LSU standout Alex Bregman.

Ragin Cajuns pitcher Hogan Harris was selected in the third round today by the Oakland Athletics. He’s been listed as a Top 150 prospect. And Tulane outfielder Grant Witherspoon went in the fourth round to the Tampa Bay Rays after hitting .330 with 12 home runs and 53 RBIs. And Southland Conference Player of the Year, Northwestern State’s David Fry was picked by the Milwaukee Brewers in the seventh round.

The Super Regional Series are set and the nation’s number four national seed Ole Miss is not among the 16 teams left. The Rebels were defeated twice yesterday by the Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles, winning game 15-5 and the night cap 3-2.

Georgia also failed to make the super regionals are losing twice to Duke.

The Sun Belt Conference has changes to the format of its mens and women’s basketball tournament. And the tourney will move to the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans in 2020.

No LSU Tigers were selected in the first two rounds of the Major League Baseball Draft, but one of the Bayou Bengals top signees, Brice Turang, was taken in the first round by the Milwaukee Brewers. The shortstop from California is seeking a large signing bonus and Milwaukee has 6-point-6 million dollars to spend on its selections, which is the sixth smallest signing pool of the 30 major league clubs.

Former Denham Springs standout Travis Swaggerty was the 10th overall pick last night as he went to the Pittsburgh Pirates. The 20-year-old Swaggerty had a standout career in the outfield for South Alabama.

The draft continues today at noon.

Former LSU running back Kevin Faulk is on the ballot for induction into the College Football Hall of Fame. Faulk holds the SEC record for all-purpose yards. Former Louisiana Tech coach Maxie Lambright is on the ballot again. He led Tech to three straight Division Two championships in the 1970s.

The Super Regionals are set. Florida is one of the 16 teams remaining as the Gators rallied to beat Florida Atlantic five to two in a winner take all match-up late last night.

The big upset was in Oxford, as Tennessee Tech eliminated Ole Miss with a three to two win. Earlier in the day, the Golden Eagles routed the Rebels 15 to 5. While Mississippi State advanced to the Super Regionals with an eight to one win over Oklahoma. The Bulldogs will face Vanderbilt in the Super Regionals.

The Sun Belt Conference has announced major changes to its basketball non-conference and conference scheduling, plus its post-season tournament. Starting in 2020 the final four teams left in the Sun Belt Tournament will play at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans. The scheduling changes are all designed to help at-large bid teams from the Sun Belt make the NCAA Tournament.

The LSU Baseball season has come to a close as the Tigers finished with a record of 39-and-27 after losing 12-0 to Oregon State last night. Tiger Rag Associate Editor, James Moran…
Cut 7 (12) “not hosting”
Mainieri now waits to see how many players and signees he loses to professional baseball. The first two rounds of the Major League Baseball draft are tonight. Zack Hess and Zach Watson are draft eligible sophomores and could be selected in the first few rounds. Mainieri is also hoping to hang on to Destrehan right-hander Landon Marceaux, who is the top high school prospect in the state and signed to play at LSU.

The Ragin Cajuns also have a couple of draft eligible junior pitchers, left-hander Hogan Harris and right hander Nick Lee.

Former LSU running back Kevin Faulk is on the ballot for induction into the College Football Hall of Fame next year. The Carencro native is the leading rusher in LSU history with 4,557 yards and he’s the SEC’s all-time leader in all-purpose yards with 6,833. Faulk still holds 10 LSU records and became the first LSU back to average 100 yards per game druing his entire career.

Former Louisiana Tech coach Maxie Lambright is also on the ballot. He led Tech to three consecutive Division Two national titiles from 1972-74. He also led the program into Division One playing status in 1975 and the Bulldogs earned two Independence Bowl berths.

The state’s top defensive back, Derek Stingley from Dunham High School in Baton Rouge, will make his commitment known on June 20th. In a twitter post, Stingley says his decision will be final and he plans to be an early enrollee. LSU, along with Florida, Texas and Alabama are recruiting him.

An up and down LSU baseball season finished on a down note last night as for the second straight night, the Tigers were overwhelmed by Oregon State 12-0. The blowout loss came hours after the Tigers staved off elimination by scoring five runs in the ninth inning to beat Northwestern State nine to five. But LSU was no match for the Beavers as the Tigers could only muster three hits and starting pitcher Devin Fontenot faced 11 batters and allowed five runs. The Tigers finished with a record of 39-27. Coach Paul Mainieri…
cut 30 (13) “…we will”
For Northwestern State, it was a heartbreaking loss to the Tigers, but still a great season for second-year head coach Bobby Barbier. The Demons were a half-inning away from reaching the regional championship round.

Tonight is the start of the Major League Baseball Draft. No one from LSU is expected to be taken in the first round. Draft eligible sophomores Zach Watson and Zack Hess are the Tigers two highest rated prospects and they’ll have a decision to make once they are drafted. The state’s highest prep prospect is Destrehan pitcher Landon Marceaux, who is an LSU signee that has a fastball in the mid-90s.

Back to the NCAA Baseball tournament…Auburn, Arkansas and Vanderbilt are the three SEC teams so far to reach the Super Regionals. Florida, Georgia, Mississippi State and Ole Miss are still alive. The Bulldogs must beat Oklahoma today in a winner take all matchup, while Ole Miss can punch its ticket, if they beat Tennessee Tech at noon today.

Golden State is up two games to none in the NBA Finals as Stephen Curry made an NBA Finals record nine three pointers in a 122-103 win.

The LSU baseball team will play a winner’s bracket contest against Oregon State in the Corvallis Regional tonight after beating San Diego State six to four, while the Beavers defeated Northwestern State nine to three. The Tigers scored three runs in the second and three more in the sixth inning. A sharp single up the middle by Jake Slaughter gave the Tigers the lead for good. Coach Paul Mainieri….
cut 30 (20) “…lead back”
Devin Fontenot threw three innings of relief for his third win and Todd Peterson breezed through the ninth inning for his sixth save.

So LSU will play Oregon State at 9 PM. The Demons will play San Diego State at 3 PM. Despite some hard contact last night, Northwestern could only muster six hits in a nine three loss.

Slate Fuller’s two run walk off home run with two strikes and two outs resulted in LSU Eunice winning its sixth national title in school history as the Bengals defeated Parkland five to three to win the division two junior college national championship. Koi Westbrook hit a single in the eighth inning to tie the game and Zach Hester struck out nine through eight innings.

Former Ragin Cajun Danny Farquhar threw the ceremonial first pitch last night at the Chicago White Sox game, just six weeks after suffering a brain hemorrage during a game. Doctors say Farquhar’s rapid recovery from a life-threatening episode is truly remarkable. It’s Farquhar’s hope that he can pitch in the leagues again next season.

SEC Presidents voted on a new rule that says grad transfers no longer have to sit out a year when transferring to another school in the conference. In recent years, Georgia’s Maruice Smith and Florida’s Malik Zaire needed a waiver to receive immediate eligibility. And Alabama head coach Nick Saban recently attempted to block offensive lineman Brandon Kennedy from going to another school.

LSU and Northwestern State baseball begin play today in the Corvallis Regional. The Tigers face San Diego State at 3 PM and Tiger Rag Associate Editor James Moran says its important for LSU to have a late lead, because the Aztecs have a lights out closer in Casey Schmitt…
cut 17 (06) “…30 minutes”
San Diego State is set to start senior right-hander Jorge Fernandez, who is 6-3 with a 4.65 ERA. The Aztecs top hitter is first baseman Jordan Verdon, who is hitting .341 with 12 home runs and 65 runs driven.

And at 9 PM the Demons will face Oregon State. The Beavers are 53-and-6 at home since the 2017 season. They’ve had a monster season from right fielder Trevor Larnach who is hitting .324 with 17 home runs and 64 runs driven in. As a team, the Beavers are hitting .318 on the season.

LSU-Eunice can win a division two national junior college championship tonight with a win over Parkland College out of Illinois. The Bengals won a school record 58th game of the season last night with a 9-5 victory over Parkland.

Saints cornerback Marshon Lattimore had a sensational rookie campaign that resulted in him being named NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year. Lattimore was motivated to have a big season last year, because 10 other teams passed up on him. The former first round pick says he still has something to prove…
cut 30 (15) “…was before”
The Saints will hold a minicamp from June 12th to the 14th at the team’s training facility in Metairie. It will be open to the public each day, weather permitting, starting at 11 AM.

LSU Coach Paul Mainieri’s team will be short on pitching for the Corvallis Regional as he says its unlikely that Ma’Khail Hilliard and AJ Labas will be able to pitch because of fatigue. Mainieri says it will behoove the Tigers to stay in the winner’s bracket. For LSU to do that, Tiger Rag Associate Editor James Moran says they need their top hitters to produce
Cut 16 (16) “have a chance”
The Tigers face San Diego State this afternoon at 3 PM central time.

And tonight at 9 PM, Northwestern State faces the number three national seed Oregon State at Goss Stadium. Oregon State’s batting average ranks third nationally as they have a team average of .318. Left-hander Ridge Heisler starts on the hill for Northwestern.

LSU-Eunice scored four runs in the sixth inning last night and that was the difference in a 9-5 win over Parkland College in Game One of the division two national junior college championship series. Koi Westrook hit a three-run homer in that decisive sixth inning. The Bengals can win the title tonight as first pitch is at 7:00.

It was a great first season in the NFL for Saints cornerback Marshon Lattimore, but the former first round pick wants to be 10-times better in year two..
cut 30 (15) “…before”
The Defensive Rookie of the Year allowed a 45.3 passer rating against him last season, which was third best in the NFL.

LSU’s home opener on September 8th against Southeastern Louisiana will kick-off at 6 PM. ULM’s season opener against the Lions has been moved to Thursday August 30th.

Sophomore left-hander Nick Bush will get the start on the mound for LSU in the NCAA Corvallis Regional when the Tigers face San Diego State on Friday at 3 PM. Bush says he’ll be ready for San Diego State’s small ball style….
cut 17 (15) “…my position”
Bush is 1-and-1 with a 3.16 ERA. Sophomore right-hander Zack Hess is scheduled to start on Saturday and Coach Paul Mainieri says freshman right-hander Ma’khail Hilliard is questionable because of soreness in the back of his pitching shoulder.

Louisiana Tech announces that two Bulldog games will be nationally televised this fall on the CBS Sports Network. The first game will be October 26th when Tech faces Florida Atlantic for a 5:30 Kick-off. The final regular season matchup of 2018 versus Western Kentucky will also be shown on CBS Sports Network. And that game is set for an 11 AM kick-off on Saturday, November 24th at Joe Aillet Stadium.

Former Grambling State star quarterback Devante Kincade has signed with the Maine Mammoths of the National Arena League.