Playing ‘possum newest fad in Baton Rouge

Published 10:35 am Tuesday, May 10, 2016

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">BATON ROUGE — It’s important to note that no rodents were harmed, embarrassed or bullied in the production of LSU’s weekend baseball sweep of Arkansas, which may have set the sport back several years anyway.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">The cute little ’possum — if there is such a thing — did appear to be out of his “safe” zone, but details are sketchy.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">For that matter it could have been a her. Or —sing along, here — a little bitty muskrat cousin.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">See, Saturday night while Arkansas was flailing away at LSU’s baseball team, everybody was still trying to figure out which Razorback had been on third</span> <span style="font-style: italic;" class="R~sep~ACopyBody">the night before</span> <span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">and, more importantly, what he was doing there and why.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">The debate raged on, with sidetracks into how getting three outs on one legal pitch is not, apparently, always a triple play.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">I guess it was during this discussion that this ’possum thingie wandered into left field, causing the Arkansas outfielders to imitate something from a zombie eclipse.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">The little critter certainly wasn’t the scariest thing on the field.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">In addition to a ’possum in the outfield, there was already what looked like a duck-billed platypus playing shortstop for LSU, ever since Kramer Robertson lost a relay throw in the lights, which swelled his upper lip into a purple watermelon.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">He’s hoping they don’t take the team picture anytime soon.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">Anyway, the LSU grounds crew shortly cornered the ’possum, bagged him, and released him humanely in a nearby empty field.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">The Arkansas players protested — they were envisioning supper.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">Instead, we never even got the little fella’s name, but apparently he was still there in spirit.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">It was a game that LSU, wasting opportunities with reckless abandon, trailed 9-1 at one point and still 9-4 in the middle of the seventh inning when the ’possum did his “put me in, coach” thing.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">When LSU threatened in the ninth — again —somebody in charge of the big screen started showing the video of the critter running around before his capture, and apparently this was enough inspiration for something LSU started offensively to finally stick.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">LSU coach Paul Mainieri, though, was unaware, yet, of the power of the ’possum.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">LSU suddenly had a real chance to win a game it had no business being in, yet he happened to look up at the jumbotron and all he saw was a dadgum ’possum running for its life.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">“Gosh dang,” he said, throwing his arms up and turning to the dugout. “Is there</span> <span style="font-style: italic;" class="R~sep~ACopyBody">another</span> <span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">’possum loose?”</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">No, but the Rally ’possum legend was about to be born.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">LSU was using a third left-fielder after the first two didn’t have much more luck playing defense out there than a marsupial did.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">So Brennen Breaux, who came in 1-for-20 on the season, went 3-for-3 over the final innings, including a 2-run, 2-out, 2-strike double for the key blow in the 4-run ninth that tied it.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">It was almost anti-climatic when LSU scored the walk-off run in the 10th on an Arkansas error, all started when the duck-billed platypus beat out an infield hit by the swell of his bill.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">So LSU won a game where it made three errors, struck out 15 times and stranded 19 base runners.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">And if you’re wondering how you strand 19 base runners in one game, it’s a lot easier if, at one point, you’re 0-for-8 with the bases loaded.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">For something that ugly, perhaps it was fitting that a Rally ’possum’ got all the credit.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">And that came on the heels of Friday’s 5-4 victory, where Mainieri described</span> <span style="font-style: italic;" class="R~sep~ACopyBody">a game that he won</span> <span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">as “Watching that was like getting beat over the head with a bat for nine innings.”</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">The fifth inning alone was enough to give anybody a headache.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">No outs, bases loaded for Arkansas, OK?</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">The Hogs’ Carson Shaddy lined one to short that pre-platypus Kramer Robertson appeared to short-hop and fire to home for a force out, whereupon catcher Jordan Romero relayed to third to get Cody Scroggins trying to advance from second.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">But second base umpire Chuck Pack had ruled that Robertson caught the ball in the air (he didn’t, but never mind) and when it was all sorted out, the run had apparently scored (no force out at home after the catch) and the batter and Scroggins, who was tagged advancing to third, were out.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">Both sides were arguing when LSU realized that, under this sweet deal, it had a chance to get a third out, since Tucker Pennell on third base had gone on contact, and thus hadn’t tagged up on a miscalled line-drive out.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">So the Tigers calmly retook their positions, and pitcher Alex Lange tossed to third for the appeal, which was granted, for the third out.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">There was one last oddity, which may never be explained.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">When the appeal was made, Pennell, who was out for leaving third TOO SOON, was back STANDING ON THIRD.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">After presumably scoring, and then going to the dugout, somehow he came back out and was standing right there.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">That begs the question: What if the umpire wasn’t sure if he’d come back and tagged.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">What if he’d denied the appeal? Would they then tell a runner standing on third that he’d actually scored, perhaps in a previous life.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">Fortunately, both teams said enough and changed sides.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">Officially it went as a double play and an appeal for the third out — baseball scoring rules are persnickety like that —although LSU got three outs on one pitch.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">So by the time Sunday rolled around, it seemed perfectly logical that Robbie Morrison, who 20 years ago served up the famous Warren Morris home run, would revisit his worst nightmare by coming to LSU to throw out the ceremonial first pitch.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">Morrison, ever the good sport, had watched both previous games in their entirety.</span>

<span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">When he made his ceremonial first pitch —to Morris, no less — he was wearing a “Rally Possum” T-shirt.</span>

<p style="text-align: center;"><span class="R~sep~ACopyBody">—</span>

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