![Florida St. infielder Alex Lodise (1) reacts to his double at second base during the first inning of an NCAA college baseball matchup Tuesday, March 25, 2025 at VyStar Ballpark in Jacksonville, Fla. FSU rallied to defeat UF 8-4 off a walk-off grand slam from Alex Lodise in the ninth inning. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union]](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,x_0,y_273,w_6000,h_3375/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/ImagnImages/mmsport/270/01jx6cpbsdfwahwd0jmw.jpg "Florida St. infielder Alex Lodise (1) reacts to his double at second base during the first inning of an NCAA college baseball matchup Tuesday, March 25, 2025 at VyStar Ballpark in Jacksonville, Fla. FSU rallied to defeat UF 8-4 off a walk-off grand slam from Alex Lodise in the ninth inning. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union]")
TIME FOR LODISE TO GET HOT
Infielder Alex Lodise has been one of the best players on the Seminoles' roster this season. The talented St. Augustine native was awarded the ACC Player of the Year. It was much-deserved as he finished with a .422 batting average.
Lodise was a special type of hitter who showcased poise and patience at the plate. Plus, he was reliable in the field when Florida State needed his defensive prowess.
BACKS AGAINST THE WALL
I already wrote about the epic collapse that was Florida State baseball, where the program got the Oregon State Beavers on the ropes with a 4-1 lead in the bottom of the ninth inning with two outs, and relief pitcher Joe Charles found a method to lose the game in extra innings.
This was not something that I blamed Charles for entirely. It was a systematic failure that Florida State needs to correct, there were fielding issues, inconsistencies at the plate, and a lack of discipline on the base paths.
Starting pitcher Jaime Arnold is on the mound in Game 2 for the Seminoles tonight. As I mentioned previously, Arnold pitching at night is a different breed and should bring an extra type of energy that Florida State could use to catapult itself into a showdown for a berth to Omaha on Sunday.
BAT SIGNAL FOR LODISE
This is my Batman signal for infielder Alex Lodise to get his bat going. This postseason has not been great for him, as he has three hits in his last fifteen at-bats. He is coming off a Game 1 performance versus the Beavers where he went 1-for-5 with three strikeouts (ouch!).
I cannot put all of the pressure on him to succeed because it has to be a team effort. But, just like Jamie Arnold, if the team sees its best offensive player perform, it creates a spark for others to follow in their footsteps.