Eli Jerzembeck is 'a weapon, no question'

Jack Mahoney and the rest of South Carolina pitching staff heard stories about this quirky freshman coming in this fall, but had to experience Eli Jerzembeck themselves. 

Jerzembeck–who was high school teammates with Noah Hall–spent the last few years building the profile of a highly-touted high school pitcher with some eccentricities about him. 

But, when Mahoney and the rest of the Gamecocks staff saw him throw, it was easy to see why he was pitching in the SEC.

[Win a mini helmet autographed by Spencer Rattler]

“Noah was tight with him so we knew what we were going to get. But you don’t really know what you’re going to get from Jerz until you see it. Then it’s the 18 year old kid who looks a little funky,” Mahoney said. 

“Then he gets a baseball in his hands and that’s god-given. He’s one of those kids who’s so dang talented and so fun to watch. He has that swag on the mound and owns the rubber. He’s going to be fun to watch. I can’t wait for you guys to see him. He’s special.” 

Hall can’t help but smile when asked if he spent time with Jerzembeck in high school, smirking and responding with a “hell yes,” when talking about it.

The two spent a year together at Providence in Charlotte with Hall a standout senior heading to App State and Jerzembeck a baby-faced freshman coming out of the bullpen pumping low-90s as a 14-year-old.

[Subscribe to Gamecock Central until Aug. 31 for only $29.99!]

“We were raw. We were good. Eli came out of the bullpen but he was a freshman throwing 92 and doing the same thing he does out here, long tossing from pole to pole every day. In high school it was every day, now he doesn’t do it every day,” Hall said. 

“He chilled a little bit. Coach (Justin) Parker is like, ‘You can’t be throwing that much.’ Jerz is my boy. It’s going to be fun. That was also one of the reasons i wanted to come back. He’s like my brother.”

It was Jerzembeck who equated himself early, finding a way to long toss every day, pole to pole, and quickly turned into one of the best high school pitchers in the country. 

So when the MLB Draft came calling, there was a thought Jerzembeck would see the money he wanted and find himself in professional baseball. That didn’t happen, and the flamethrowing righty found his way down Interstate 77 to Columbia. 

South Carolina still has to find a way to use him, but there’s no doubt he’s going to get used. 

[Become an NIL supporter of your South Carolina Gamecocks!]

“I call him a weapon. I’m not ready call him a starter or a bullpen arm or any of those. I’m not going to label him any of those yet, but he is a weapon,” Mark Kingston said. “It’s 96 to 97, it’s three different offspeed pitches in any count. He’s not afraid to throw any pitch at any time. His dad is a former major league baseball player. He’s got everything you’re looking for.”

Like his early days at Providence, Jerzembeck’s equated himself well with a fastball now in the mid-to-upper 90s and a breaking ball that is big-league good. 

The Gamecocks, though, return some entrenched starters like Will Sanders and Noah Hall. But Jack Mahoney, Matthew Becker, James Hicks will also compete for starter innings along with Jerzembeck. 

He might serve as a high-leverage bullpen arm, but there’s no doubt South Carolina is eager to see how he progresses as a key piece of an already talented pitching staff. 

[Subscribe for free to Gamecock Central’s YouTube page!]

“He’s competitive and very confident .he has a reason to be cause his stuff is electric. How we decide to best use him is going to require some patience on his part because we want to make sure we put him in a great position to succeed but also what’s the best way to use him?” Kingston said.

“It could be as a starter. It could be as a Landon Sims type of pitcher like Mississippi State used. And then anywhere in between. But he’s a weapon, no question.” 

Discuss South Carolina baseball on The Insiders Forum!