As the LSU Tigers baseball team searches for answers, they may just be getting one as outfielder Chris Stanfield continues to progress towards a return.
During his radio show, Tigers head coach Jay Johnson said that Stanfield is about 7-10 days away from being back in the lineup, per LouisianaSports.net's Matt Moscona. The outfielder got injured sliding into home in the second game of the season. He has missed the last 15 games, while LSU has gone 10-4.
The good news is that Johnson also said that Stanfield has been able to swing his bat "full go" as of Monday. That means that his return date should be much longer. It does feel like he's going to miss a couple more games, though.
The Tigers' offense has been slumping hard, and perhaps getting Stanfield back could be a bolt of energy that the team needs.
Stanfield isn't known for his bat, but he was much more efficient at the plate than before he came to LSU. Replicating last year's performance would be very welcome in this current group.
The senior slashed .298/.414/.404 last year with one home run and 31 RBI. He did strike out a fair bit, but he made up for it.
Defensively, he's a game-changer. The range that he will be able to cover in left field will give the Tigers an advantage. An outfield consisting of Stanfield, Derek Curiel and Jake Brown could be the best defensive unit in the country.
Stanfield will be welcomed back with open arms after they have failed to find a consistent replacement for him on the bench. The 22-year-old has gone 2-for-7 with two runs scored, a double, a walk and a strikeout.