College World Series finals: LSU vs. Coastal Carolina breakdown, predictions ...Middle East

It’s finally time for the College World Series finals.

LSU and Coastal Carolina will duel it out in a best-of-3 series beginning on Saturday night for college baseball’s top crown. Both of these teams have won National Championships over the last decade, so this is a matchup between 2 of the sport’s top overall programs.

College World Series: LSU vs. Coastal Carolina breakdown

This story will break down the pitching rotations and lineups for both LSU and Coastal Carolina. We’ll start with the pitching side of things for both teams.

LSU pitching staff analysis

Here’s a look at the projected pitching rotation for LSU:

Anderson owns a 3.44 ERA this season and is one of the best strikeout arms in the country (170 in 110 innings). He’s recently gained momentum to be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 MLB Draft. Anderson is arguably the most dominant arm in the country and is especially hard on lefties. He last appeared in a game on June 14, so he should be fresh for the finals. 

Eyanson has gone under the radar this season, but he’s a difference-maker as a No. 2 option on the mound for LSU. He also has an elite strikeout rate (143 in 101.2 innings) and has limited batters to just a .215 average this season (lower than Anderson’s .218 mark). He last pitched on June 16, so he should be ready for a start at some point this weekend as well. However, it’s worth noting he’s given up 7 earned runs over his last 8 innings of work in the postseason.

Cowan was a reliever for most of this season but has been a starter in the NCAA Tournament. He was bounced early from a start in the Regional round against Little Rock, though he was outstanding against Arkansas in the College World Series on Wednesday night. He likely wouldn’t start a game again until Monday (if necessary), but the pattern suggests he’d get the nod if LSU and Coastal go to a third game. 

The other name to know here is freshman righty Casan Evans. He’s been exceptional for LSU during the postseason, with all 4 of his appearances coming out of the bullpen. It’s possible he could get a start in this series, but more likely he’ll be used in a long relief role if Eyanson or Cowan get into trouble early. 

Coastal Carolina pitching staff analysis

Here’s a breakdown of Coastal Carolina’s pitching situation: 

Morrison is an absolute ace. Coming into the postseason, there were concerns about whether his stuff would play against power conference teams. Those concerns have been whisked away after he limited Auburn and Oregon State to just 2 earned runs combined across his last 13.1 innings of work. Morrison last threw on June 15 and is expected to pitch on Sunday for Game 2. 

Flukey will get Game 1 on Saturday night to allow Morrison to pitch on 6 days of rest on Sunday. He’s had mixed results so far against power conference teams, giving up 5 earned runs while striking out just 7 in his last 9 innings vs. Auburn and Arizona. 

Eikhoff pitched on Wednesday, so he would presumably not pitch again for the Chanticleers until a possible Game 3 on Monday night. He’s been great in this postseason and owns a respectable ERA on the year, but he does allow a lot of contact. Opposing batters are hitting .261 against him this season and he has just 71 strikeouts in 90 innings. That could be problematic against a strong LSU offense.

LSU baseball lineup analysis

LSU has a great offense, and it seems to match up particularly well with Coastal Carolina’s pitching staff. All 3 of the Chanticleers’ primary starting pitcher options are righties. By batting average, 4 of LSU’s top 8 hitters are left-handed — that sets up well for the Tigers to have advantages throughout the lineup. 

This is an LSU lineup that relies primarily on slugging with a .508 mark in that category. The Tigers rank top 30 nationally in that regard entering the championship series. LSU has 4 hitters who have double-digit home runs and doubles on the year. 

The Tigers have another significant strength: they don’t strike out very often. Collectively, LSU batters have struck out 500 times in 2,220 at-bats this season. That’s good for a strikeout rate of 22.7% — mostly against SEC pitching. Coastal Carolina’s top arms all have a K/9 under 9, so I expect LSU will put the ball in play a ton during this series. 

Coastal Carolina lineup analysis

On paper, Coastal’s lineup doesn’t stack up like LSU’s does. The Chanticleers have just 3 regulars with a batting average over .300. Only two hitters managed double-digit home runs this season. It’s also equally rare to find anyone with a slugging percentage over .500. Yet Coastal has found a way to score runs. They’ve scored at least 6 runs in 4 of their last 5 games, a stretch that includes victories over Oregon State, Arizona, Louisville, and Auburn. 

Coastal does get on base at an elite clip, as its team-wide on-base percentage ranks in the top 50 nationally. You’d think that means the Chanticleers have an excellent walk rate, but they’re actually getting on base another way: hit by pitch. Coastal leads the nation this season with 176 hit batters. That’s absurd. Walker Mitchell alone has been hit 32 times in 63 games. Six different Coastal regulars have been hit at least 15 times. It’s been a legitimate mode of offense for Coastal this season. Of course, there should be concerns about how translatable that is against an LSU staff that has elite command. Anderson, Eyanson, Cowan, and Evans have combined for 15 hit batters all season in over 300 innings of work. 

College World Series betting predictions

Here are a few predictions for Game 1 and for the series as a whole:

A run in the first inning of Game 1 (-120 on bet365). With Flukey going instead of Morrison, I think it’s likely we see some traffic during LSU’s half inning. He’s not been great against elite competition and I think LSU’s offense will be ready from the jump. We’re paying some juice on this prop at -120, but I think it’s worth it. Anderson, should he get the start as expected, is unlikely to run into trouble in the first, but if he does, then of course that side would pay out on this prop as well. 

LSU -2.5 in Game 1 (+190 on bet365). I’d grab this alt line with the idea that LSU could have a comfortable victory on Saturday night. Anderson profiles as the type of arm who should be able to shut down this Coastal lineup (which includes 3 lefties). Even if it turns out to be Eyanson on the bump, I think he has the strikeout stuff to be dominant against Coastal. With Coastal saving Morrison for Sunday, this game is not a must-win for the Chanticleers. If Flukey runs into trouble early, I don’t think we’ll see Coastal’s best bullpen arms in this one either. 

RELATED: Interested in betting on the College World Series finals? Here’s a breakdown of the best sports betting apps on the market so you can make the right choice!

LSU to win the series (-180 on bet365). Hats off to Coastal Carolina, who have 26 in a row coming down the stretch of a magical season. I think there’s a great chance Coastal will win a game in this series (Sunday being the most likely) but I’m not sure how competitive the other games will be. LSU is more battle-tested and has the better statistical profile on both sides of the diamond. 

bet365 SportsbookOfferT&CsStates: NJ, PA, AZ, CO, IA, IL, IN, KY, NJ, LA, OH, TN, VA GAMBLING PROBLEM? CALL 1-800-GAMBLER (CO/KY/LA/NJ/OH/VA) and 1-800-BETS-OFF (IA) 21+ (CO/IA/NJ/OH/VA) and 18+ (KY) Deposit required. Paid in Bonus Bets. Bonus Bets wager excluded from returns.  New Customers only. T&Cs, time limits and exclusions apply.

Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( College World Series finals: LSU vs. Coastal Carolina breakdown, predictions )

Also on site :

• 'Hissing door mid-air': AI flight to Hong Kong spooks flyers; crew use napkins to 'fix' issue
• Israel says it killed a commander of Iranian force that oversees proxy militias.
• Shoppers Are Racing to Walmart To Buy an 'Impressive' 834-Piece LEGO 'Star Wars' Set