The Weekend Rotation: LSU Baseball Reveals Starting Pitchers for Opening Weekend

Jay Johnson and the LSU Tigers will begin the 2025 season on Friday for an Opening Day matchup against Purdue-Fort Wayne.

Johnson and Co. enter the year as a consensus top-five program in America after the program pieced together another starr-studded roster during the offseason.

The Tigers reeled in a top-ranked recruiting class paired with another elite haul via the NCAA Transfer Portal in order to put together a National Championship caliber squad.

Now, the 2025 season is two days away with Johnson revealing who LSU will send to the mound as the starters on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Which Tigers received the nod as starters for Opening Weekend in Alex Box Stadium against Purdue-Fort Wayne?

The Opening Weekend Starters:

The Friday Starter: Kade Anderson

LSU sophomore Kade Anderson will serve as the program's Friday night starter heading into Opening Day.

Anderson, a 2025 Baseball America Preseason All-American, recorded an outstanding 2024 freshman season for LSU, making 18 appearances (nine starts) and posting a 4-2 mark with a 3.99 ERA and 59 strikeouts in 38.1 innings.

The native of Madisonville, La., was especially effective in the postseason, working 2.1 scoreless innings over two NCAA Chapel Hill Regional appearances on the same day (June 2 vs. Wofford and North Carolina) with two hits, one walk and six strikeouts.

Anderson also made two appearances in the SEC Tournament, working 1.2 scoreless innings with one hit, one walk and three strikeouts.

The Saturday Starter: Anthony Eyanson

UC-San Diego transfer Anthony Eyanson has received the nod from Johnson as the program's Saturday starter heading into Opening Weekend.

Eyanson, who transferred to LSU last summer from UC San Diego, was an All-Big West Second-Team selection in 2024, posting a 6-2 mark and a 3.07 ERA in 82.0 innings over 14 appearances (nine starts) with 85 strikeouts and a .190 opponent batting average.

Eyanson, a member of the USA Baseball Collegiate National Team, was twice named the Big West Pitcher of the Week in 2024. The product of Lakewood, Calif., is ranked No. 4 on the Baseball America list of the Top 100 College Transfers for the 2025 season, and he received 2025 Preseason All-America recognition from the NCBWA.

The Sunday Starter: Chase Shores

LSU's Chase Shores will serve as the Sunday starter as he returns to the program after missing the 2024 season.

Shores, a product of Midland, Texas, returns to the mound for LSU in 2025 after missing last season while recovering from Tommy John surgery. He appeared in seven games (four starts) during the Tigers’ 2023 National Championship season before being sidelined by an elbow injury on March 31.

Shores posted an 0-1 mark and a 0.96 ERA in 2023 with nine walks and 15 strikeouts in 18.1 innings, limiting opponents to a .231 cumulative batting average.

Classified as a junior academically, Shores was ranked No. 20 on the Perfect Game Baseball Top 100 Juniors list for the 2025 season, and he received 2025 Baseball America Preseason All-America recognition.

More LSU News:

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