Front Porch FootballState of The Program: Carolina Baseball
by Ryder Tipton, Guest Writer
What in the hell is going on with South Carolina Baseball? Let’s visit for a minute and walk through how we got here.
No, our prior coach didn’t walk out in the middle of the season and forget one of, if not the most important aspects of the college game, recruiting. That being said, the cupboard is as bare as I can readily remember. Last season, we had a weekend rotation of Clark Schmidt, Will Crowe, and Adam Hill before the season took its toll. The veteran leadership of Josh Reagan, Reed Scott, and Tyler Johnson anchored our bullpen. We had a lineup that we thought would be solid. If John Jones could find his stroke from early 2016, and a couple newcomers like Carlos Cortes came along we could be pretty darn good.
Carlos Cortes; Image Provided By: The State
Fast-forward to Thursday, April 6th. We’re sitting at 20-9. A record most programs would love to have and never question the “quality” of the wins. We swept Tennessee, we were coming off of a series win against ‘Bama and a 2-1 series loss against Auburn. Keep in mind, on April 6th, we were 20-9 with a rotation of three “Friday Night Guys” and a lineup that should have been able to score enough runs to win a lot of ball games. In Columbia the phrase “Omaha or Bust” really was the truth when Ray retired. We knew it might take a little time to get back there, but I think most fans knew a squad with these arms and these bats really should have been an “Omaha or Bust” team. I mean we played in a Super the year prior and we should have been better in 2017 (I nearly had countless heat strokes sitting behind the dugout for the Regional and showdown with OkSt. No joke, it was 110 degrees). We finally had the team to go back and the Yard Cock swagger to return under the lights at TD Ameritrade and announce that our slumber as giants was over. But we didn’t. Ohhhhh but we didn’t.
We had a Thursday, Friday, Saturday series against one of our biggest East rivals in Vandy. They were having a bit of a down year themselves sitting at #16 (still nothing to scoff at). We lost two of three and had a big 6-1 win that Saturday. We showed resiliency and fight for a coach that was all but crucified according to many faithful fans. We took the trip up to Charlotte to engage in our own form of a “Border War” with the boys from the “other” Carolina. This was a game our fan base needed. We wanted to make a stand in Charlotte after being throttled the year prior. This was Holbrook’s alma mater and previously an assistant. We might not win, but surely we wouldn’t be run out of the state. I’m not talking about the “run out of town” to Carowinds either, I’m talking about the only reason we stopped retreating in Columbia was our bus must have broken down. It was a 20-5 drubbing. We never recovered.
Image Provided By: Garnet and Black Attack
We proceeded to lose series to Miss. St., Florida (when we lost Schmidt), Kentucky, LSU, Mizzou, and UGA consecutively (oddly, we weren’t swept in any of these series). We played as if we didn’t want to lose rather than wanting to win. We fought hard but it seemed more like a fight not to lose. We entered the SEC tourney at 33-23. We were over .500 but is that the measuring stick a program with 2 National Championships this decade and outstanding facilities should be aspiring for?
As the SEC Tournament began, we actually put together a better performance than normal. We won 3 games. Our last game, which was our 5th in 5 days, was against LSU. Our starters were tired, our bullpen depleted and our team seemingly hurt. We walked off losing 11-0 in 7 innings. 5 games in 5 days will do that to you. We knew this was the end of the road for us. There would be no postseason. Fight as he may Holbrook knew this was the end for him. It was a team loaded with talent, that injuries, bounces, breaks and luck just wouldn’t give a break. To the credit of the players, although at times the coach might have seemed to accept his “dead man walking” mantra the team, players and fans fought. You have to believe you’re going to win every game, and the players seemed to still stick with this idea even if the breaks, injuries and luck didn’t give them a chance. They suited up every day and went about it the right way. At least to those watching they still cared, fought and were grinding.
Fast-forward a year. We’re coming off another loss to UNC in Charlotte (This year was the first I wasn’t excited for the game because I couldn’t dare harness any hope, and although we kept it close, a loss is a loss and I’m getting awfully tired of this…) We’re sitting at 19-14 and 5-7 in the SEC. Somehow we’ve made it this far and are still winless on the road. Maybe calling them out on it will help. Baseball is a weird game.
North Carolina Has Lately Owned South Carolina in Baseball; Image Provided By: The Post and Courier
I’ve grown up a Carolina fan. I know how sports as a Gamecock go. In the fall we tease the fans convincing them there’s a chance to get wins against superior teams just to find a new and sometimes not only improbable but also seemingly impossible way to blow it. I was also born a Braves fan. Baseball was my happy time. For all the heartbreak and misery of 0-11 seasons in the fall, the spring was a time for rebirth and hope at Turner Field (and the Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium but I only remember so much about those days. I had an 8pm bedtime that I’d break, but 10 p.m. was late!) and the Sarge. The Braves haven’t been much to write home about the past couple years, although things are looking up in the ATL. Carolina doesn’t, or rather shouldn’t have a “rebuilding” excuse though. Yet, here we are. Even those funneling into Founder’s Park with Garnet colored glasses even have to admit we’re in a rebuilding phase. Arguably, through the first few weeks of the season our best arm was a kid who, stop me if you’ve heard this line before, “Should still be a senior in High School”. No, Jake Bentley didn’t take his talents to the diamond, but rather a young hurler named John Gilreath.
We have Adam Hill for Friday nights, assuming his tendonitis doesn’t get worse. He’s been phenomenal more times than not (3.58 ERA, 3-2, 53K’s in 32.2 Innings with 16BB and a .110 AVG Against and these numbers don’t tell how nasty he can really be). Cody Morris is doing his best as a sophomore with little game action before this season and has flashed some plus-stuff. We don’t really have a clear answer for our Sunday guy, and other than Demurias out there as our closer/”fireman” there’s still a number of question marks in the pen. So, all this rambling and history this leads us to the “Where The Heck Are We” thought.
“You Are What Your Record Says You Are”-Ryder Tipton- Bill Parcells.
So we’re 19-14, and obviously that MEANS we’re 19-14. We’re coming off a sweep of Tennessee at home and getting swept by UGA away. We’re struggling to win mid-week games and getting headlines like “Gamecocks Escape Davidson”. So, I don’t think anyone, even the most die-hards really KNOW where we are right now. Anti-Climatic right? But, we’re moving in the right direction. We knew the cupboard in the rotation and in the ‘pen was bare. We knew we’d be relying on young kids and SMU/JUCO transfers to try and allow our lineup to power us to win playing “Kingston ball”. Which, best I can tell through nearly 30 games is mashing, trying to take extra bases, avoiding bunting except in dire circumstances, and causing controlled chaos on the base paths. What’s not to like?
We’re rebuilding. Maybe not reloading as we stand to potentially lose guys like TJ Hopkins, Jacob Olson, (I think Carlos Cortes might be eligible even though he’s a Sophomore but please don’t hold me to that), Eddy Demurias, LT Tolbert, Madison Stokes, Adam Hill, Jonah Bride, Chris Cullen, Hunter Taylor, and Matt Williams. The reason I throw these names out there is that if you’ve made it this far, and if you have I commend you, but these names mean something to you in that they make up a LOT of our healthy starting nine. Next year will be a reloading year too I’m afraid. There’s a good bit of transition and seeing what we have this year. Of course not all of those guys I listed will go (maybe they will), but I selfishly hope not. I don’t like this “rebuilding” thing, but Kingston has shown he has the wherewithal to put runs on the board. We have a history of having some good pitchers develop here and some good freshmen arms that just need time and exposure to take that next step.
Carolina Made Three Straight College World Series Championship Series (2010-2012), Winning Two; Photo Provided By: Pinterest.
