MICHAEL JOHNSON
Bertman, who turned 87 in May, moves with a walker now. But he said he still intends on making the trek to Omaha at some point during the College World Series.
Skip Bertman has been through a lot since he retired from coaching. The loss of his beloved wife of 63 years, Sandy Bertman, in March. The loss of his home to a fire about 20 years ago.
Recently, Bertman had a fall at a restaurant that left him with a fracture in his hip. But that was not keeping him off the field Sunday night at Alex Box Stadium — the field named after him — as he helped celebrate the LSU baseball team’s 20th trip to the College World Series with a 12-5 super regional victory over West Virginia.
“I’m very, very proud,” Bertman said, wearing a “CHAMPS” cap given to LSU players and coaches as the victory celebration swirled around him. “Jay (Johnson, LSU’s current coach) is terrific. His staff is terrific. But tonight, the crowd was terrific, they made a difference.Bertman particularly was impressed by the standing ovation given to LSU senior Josh Pearson for his last home at-bat in the ninth inning. Pearson is the only player who has been with Johnson his entire four years at LSU.
“That can’t happen anywhere else but here,” Bertman said.
The founder of the LSU baseball dynasty, Bertman coached the Tigers from 1984-2001. He led the program from irrelevance to national prominence, including the program’s first trip to the College World Series in 1986.
LSU made a total of 11 trips to Omaha under Bertman, winning five CWS championships from 1991-2000. He went 870-330-3, a career winning percentage of .724, including an 89-29 record (.754) in the NCAA Tournament that is the highest by any coach ever
