Mark Kingston provides update on shortstop battle
Fall ball is a time for experimenting and seeing what a team has. But it’s also a time for players to prove their value and fight for starting spots.
There’s a lot of that going on at South Carolina this fall. The main position battle is at shortstop with two young guys — Will Tippett and Lee Ellis — going at it every day.
The start of the season is still months away, but head coach Mark Kingston provided an update on how Tippett and Ellis are competing.
“It’s 50-50 right now,” Kingston said. “Again, they’ve both had really good moments. Some days, Tip is ahead. Some days, Ellis is ahead. It’s a good competition.”
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After last season, the Gamecocks were left with a big hole to fill when veteran shortstop Braylen Wimmer left for the pros. He’s now with the Colorado Rockies organization.
Wimmer was a super productive hitter last year, hitting .304 with a .970 OPS and 42 RBI while also playing really good defense.
It’s hard to replace a player of that pedigree but Tippett and Ellis could prove to fill the void, regardless of who starts Opening Day.
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Tippett has the advantage of being around the program for some time now. He played all over the diamond for the Gamecocks last year but struggled at the plate. He slashed .182/.305/.291 with three homers and 15 RBI but also struck out 47 times and walked 19.
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Ellis is an incoming freshman from White Plains, MD. He was a top-100 prospect coming out of the 2023 class. Perfect Game ranked him as the No. 85 player in the class and a top 30 shortstop. And in Maryland, he was ranked as the No. 1 shortstop.
Right now, Kingston isn’t anywhere close to making a decision. And he shouldn’t be with plenty of time to evaluate the talent at each position.
However, he did say one of the ways he decides these position battles goes off what the team needs.
“Some areas you may lean defense and areas you may lean offense, but who gives us the best chance to win at the end of the day,” Kingston said. “It’s about who helps you provide runs, who helps you create runs. And in their spot, who they’re competing against, you just compare them to their competition.”
