PGCROSSCHECKER COLLEGE TEAM SCOUTING REPORT

44. LOUISIANA STATE (35-24, did not qualify for NCAA post-season play).

Conference/Projected Finish: Southeastern/10^th (13-17, 8^th in 2006).

Coach: Paul Mainieri (first year; head coach at Notre Dame in 2006).

First Game: Feb. 9 vs. St. Mary’s (Calif. ).

OVERVIEW: The Tigers cleaned house after the 2006 season, sweeping out the entire coaching staff after they failed to even reach post-season play—unthinkable for a program that won five national titles from 1991-2000. New coach Paul Mainieri, who had a successful run at Notre Dame, has some rebuilding to do as four regulars are gone and the pitching staff is unsettled. Among the holdovers he can count on are sophomore 3B J.T. Wise (.299-11-40), junior SS Michael Hollander (.280-5-33) and sophomore OF Jarred Bogany (.319-0-16), along with  sophomore RHP Louis Coleman (5-6, 6.14).

X-Factor: Mainieri and his staff didn’t have much time or opportunity to bring in outside talent to beef up the roster, but lucked out when 6-foot-4, 205-pound LHP Charlie Furbush, a Cape Cod League all-star who pitched at tiny St. Joseph’s (Maine) College in his first two college seasons, went looking for a bigger stage to showcase his talent and picked LSU. Furbush will be joined in the rotation by RHP Jared Bradford, the top junior college player in Alabama .

TOP FRESHMAN: Jared Mitchell, of. He was LSU’s big recruiting catch, but his commitment to the football team compromised his standing in the draft and also his opportunity to showcase his first-round talent on the baseball field in the fall. He’s a plus runner, but his athleticism is his best tool. He has a chance to swing the bat as he stays inside the ball well; he also has a chance to hit for power as he should create lift in his swing, enabling him to drive the ball. He will continue to have football commitments this spring and his inexperience may open the door for another freshman, LHP-OF Blake Dean, to demonstrate his two-way ability. Dean can hit and will start at DH, but his greater value may end up being on the mound.

TOP SOPHOMORE: Louis Coleman, rhp. LSU’s two best sophomores, Coleman and Wise, are draft-eligible this year. Coleman struggled at times as a freshman while working under a heavy workload, but he has two plus pitches—a fastball that touches 93 mph and a slider.

TOP JUNIOR: Charlie Furbush, lhp. Furbush blossomed last summer in the Cape Cod League, proving to himself that he could play with anyone on the college level. That facilitated his move to a major Division I program and he’ll be LSU’s Friday starter this season. His fastball, normally in the 89-91 mph range, has topped at 94.

TOP SENIOR: Steven Waguespack, of. Unlike last year when seniors like Quinn Stewart (.287-23-56) made the offense go, the contributions of seniors this year are expected to be minimal. Waguespack (.321-3-20), the team’s top hitter in 2006 but undrafted, will start in right field.