Paul Mainieri, South Carolina baseball add top JUCO infielder

Almost 24 hours after Paul Mainieri was named South Carolina’s new baseball coach, the Gamecocks have added what appears to be an important commitment.

Cayden Gaskin, a JUCO middle infielder at Northwest Florida State College, announced a pledge to South Carolina on Twitter/X Wednesday afternoon.

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Gaskin hit .403 with seven home runs, 59 RBI, and 73 runs scored in 55 games played this past season. Gaskin led his team with 79 hits, 21 doubles, two triples, and 41 stolen bases.

Gaskin was named NJCAA Third-Team All-American, the 2024 Panhandle Conference Player of the Year, and earned First-Team All-FCSAA/Region VIII honors.

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South Carolina board approves contracts for Paul Mainieri, four other coaches

By Jack Veltri

Less than 24 hours after rumors started circulating, Paul Mainieri will officially become the 31st head baseball coach at South Carolina.

South Carolina’s Board of Trustees approved a contract for Mainieri on Tuesday afternoon. Per the agreement, his contract will be five years, ending on May 31, 2029. He will make $1.3 million annually.

“Paul Mainieri is an outstanding coach, teacher, competitor and someone that I have known for many years,” said Athletics Director Ray Tanner.  “One can judge his success through his many championships, SEC and NCAA, but I see the impact he has made on young men and know he can have that same success here as has achieved in his career.”

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Mainieri, 66, hasn’t coached in college baseball since 2021 when he previously announced his retirement. But 2025 will mark his 40th season as a head coach. He owns a 1,501-775-8 record over his career at St. Thomas, Air Force, Notre Dame and LSU. He’s been to the College World Series six times, winning his only title with LSU in 2009.

“This is a wonderful opportunity to coach at a prestigious and tradition-rich college baseball program,” Mainieri said. “I coached and competed against Ray Tanner for years and always had the greatest respect for him and the USC program. To now join with him on the same team and become a part of this program was simply something from which I could not walk away. We have a super coaching staff in place, I feel great and energized, I can’t wait to get started working with the players, and let’s get this University of South Carolina baseball program back to where it belongs – in Omaha and in the College World Series.”

In addition to Mainieri, the board approved other contracts, including two more baseball hires. Set to join Mainieri’s coaching staff will be Terry Rooney and Monte Lee.

Rooney’s contract will be three years, ending May 31, 2027. He will make $425,000 annually.

Lee’s contract will also be three years, ending May 31, 2027. He will make $550,000 annually.

Rooney was on Mainieri’s staff at Notre Dame back in 2004 and followed him to LSU, where he’d be an assistant for two seasons. He then returned to Baton Rouge in 2023 to be LSU’s associate director of program development and recruiting. But in those first two seasons at LSU under Mainieri, Rooney assembled the nation’s No. 1 recruiting class that contributed to the 2009 championship squad.

During Rooney’s career, he has mentored 14 pitchers that went on to make it to the MLB. He’s also responsible for 20 pitchers that were selected within the first 10 rounds of the MLB Draft. When he was at Old Dominion from 2000-01, he recruited and signed future hall of famer Justin Verlander.

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As for Lee, he’ll return to South Carolina for his third season after coming back to Columbia in 2023. After Mark Kingston was fired last Monday, Lee was promoted to become the interim head coach as the search started. But he’ll return to being an assistant on Mainieri’s staff next season.

The Gamecocks have also added John Hendry as an assistant coach. Hendry comes to the Garnet and Black after three seasons as the University of Virginia’s Director of Player Development.

In addition to the four baseball hires, the board approved a contract for Ashley Chastain to become South Carolina’s head softball coach. She will receive a five-year contract, ending June 30, 2029. She will make $300,000 annually.

Chastain takes over for former head coach Beverly Smith. She spent the last five years as the head coach at Charlotte, where she compiled a 154-96 record, leading the 49ers to the program’s first-ever outright regular season conference championship in 2023.

Chastain pitched at South Carolina for three seasons and finished 11th in career relief appearances for the Gamecocks. She led the team in starts, innings pitched, and ERA during her junior season. She was a three-time member of the SEC Academic Honor Roll. And she served as a graduate assistant coach for South Carolina following her playing career.

Lastly, the men’s golf program will be led by new head coach Rob Bradley next season. Bradley has spent the past 11-plus years leading the golf program at Purdue, where he has turned the Boilermakers into a contender on the Big Ten and national level.

Bradley will take over for former head coach Bill McDonald, who had been at South Carolina since 2006. He will receive a five-year contract, ending May 31, 2029. He will make $240,000 annually.

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