Jay Johnson says Hayden Travinski has ‘a little ways to go’ in recovery

LSU has advanced to the championship series in Omaha, set to face Florida in a rematch of the 2017 national title series. But will the Tigers have star catcher Hayden Travinski available?

The redshirt junior catcher hasn’t played since being lifted for a pinch runner on Monday in a 3-2 loss to Wake Forest.

“Yeah, in terms of Hayden, he was nursing a small injury, and it became a little bit bigger injury earlier in the tournament,” coach Jay Johnson said on Friday. “Massive, massive gratitude for him giving it a go on Monday. He did the best he could with where he was at. And this time of year, that’s the way it has to be.”

Travinski didn’t play in games against Tennessee on Tuesday and Wake Forest on Wednesday and Thursday. That took a big bat out of the team’s lineup in some closely contested games.

The Tigers would love to have Hayden Travinski available against the Gators in the championship series starting on Saturday night.

“He was not available to play on Tuesday,” Johnson said. “Might have been available to pinch-hit on Wednesday. We had some progress yesterday, but we’ve got a little ways to go to know where we’re going to stand with what he will be or won’t be available for going into the weekend.”

Travinski has hit .375 this season, so he’s been a major force at the plate. He’s knocked out 10 homers and five doubles, driving in 29 runs while scoring 30 himself.

LSU has gotten by without Hayden Travinski available, though, beating Tennessee 5-0 and then Wake Forest 5-2 and 2-0 (in 11 innings).

But with LSU now unable to throw ace Paul Skenes early in the championship series after using him on Thursday night, the Tigers will need all hands on deck to try to get after the Gators.

With Travinski on the bench due to his injury, LSU has turned to Alex Milazzo behind the plate. He’s been an excellent defensive option but doesn’t provide quite as much at the plate, typically. He boasts a .292 average on the season.

In the three games without Hayden Travinski available, Milazzo is 2-of-10 at the plate with three strikeouts.

LSU and Florida are slated for a 7 p.m. ET first pitch on Saturday with the game broadcast on ESPN. Despite playing in the SEC, Florida and LSU did not meet during the regular season or in the conference tournament.

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