With primary core coming back, Gamecocks chances for success high
When Gene Cone lined out to Oklahoma State second baseman J.R. Davis, it marked not only the end of Sunday’s game but the end of the Gamecock baseball season.
A season that saw 46 wins, an SEC East title, a regional host and four straight elimination-game victories to win a regional came to an end Sunday.
After missing out on a postseason last year, a Gamecock team with majority underclassmen and junior college transfers ended up going on a season-long run that ended with a 3-1 loss in the Super Regionals.
Not a GamecockCentral.com member and want to get all the scoop? SUBSCRIBE NOW!
“I’ve been coaching for twenty-something years and I don’t know if I’ve enjoyed a team more than this one,” head coach Chad Holbrook said. “We set a goal in September to put the program back on the map after last year and they certainly did that.”
And with the young team, it means the Gamecocks (46-18) will return the core of a team that made it deep into the postseason this year. Guaranteed to come back are starting pitchers Clarke Schmidt and Adam Hill.
Relievers Tyler Johnson, Reed Scott and Josh Reagan—who all pitched big innings this season—will also come back. Pitcher Wil Crowe, who sat out this season with Tommy John surgery, has told the coaching staff he will come back for his senior season.
The team could potentially lose starting pitcher Braden Webb and long reliever Taylor Widener, both of whom were drafted this weekend.
But with that core group of pitchers, this team could surpass this year’s and reach the College World Series in Omaha. But it’ll have to wait until February to get started on that path.
“I certainly love my team that’s coming back next year, but you don’t accomplish anything about what’s on paper,” Holbrook said. “I certainly wish we could start tomorrow with the Wil Crowes, the Clarke Schmidts and the Tyler Johnsons of the world.”
Of the position players who played significantly this season, the Gamecocks won’t lose too much on the surface.
Questions still loom about outfielders Dom Thompson-Williams and Taylor Widener and if they will return for their senior seasons. But other than those two, the Gamecocks will return nine of the 13 batters that had an at-bat this postseason.
Freshmen LT Tolbert, Chris Cullen and TJ Hopkins will likely see big innings next season and sophomores Madison Stokes, Alex Destino, John Jones and Jonah Bride will all return with another season under their belts and postseason experience.
Not to mention Holbrook and the coaching staff is bringing in a recruiting class ranked No. 12 by Perfect Game. So with Holbrook saying he enjoys this team, the possibility exists for next year’s squad to be as good, if not better.
“We have some exciting young players in TJ and Cullen and LT and Madison, John, Jonah. We have a pretty good foundation for next year,” Holbrook said. “It’s going to take a lot of work and preparation and I can’t wait to be around those guys.”
Holbrook summed it up best when he said the team put the program back on the map.
The Gamecocks were picked to finish third in the East in the preseason polls but finished atop it.
The Gamecocks were ranked low, or not at all, in many preseason polls to start the season but were ranked No. 9 heading into the Super Regionals.
Holbrook said while the team missed out on its ultimate goal, the program has in part been restored to what it was after a disappointing season last year.
And with the core returning and postseason experience under its belt, there’s little chance they’ll be picked third or left off preseason rankings and a better chance that they’ll be atop those two things.
“We’re going to carry it on,” Schmidt said about the team’s success. “I can guarantee we’ll be back next year. I think we’re going to Omaha next year. We’re just scratching the surface of what we can do. This is just the beginning."
Never miss a moment with the GamecockCentral app: App Store - Google Play
