OMAHA—Well, the Austin Ross gambit didn’t work out for LSU today, but Paul Mainieri recognized that Ross didn’t have it and got him out of the game before it was too late. Ross allowed just two runs on four hits over two innings, but he had trouble with his control and command, and just 22 of his 41 pitches were strikes. Trailing just 2-1 heading into the third inning, Mainieri called upon lefty Ryan Byrd to relieve Ross.

Unlike last night, Texas coach Augie Garrido elected not to pinch-hit for Russell Moldenhauer against a lefthanded pitcher. Moldenhauer responded with his fourth home run of the CWS (tying a single-Series record), a solo shot with one out in the third. It’s now 3-1 Longhorns.

UPDATE: Well, the Byrd move didn’t work out, either. Texas tacked on another run on Connor Rowe’s RBI double down the left-field line, scoring Cameron Rupp. That was it for Byrd. Now we’ll see if Nolan Cain can slow down this hot-hitting Texas lineup, or if LSU’s middle relief will finally be exposed.