Transfer pitcher Aydin Palmer explains how his development in JUCO led him to South Carolina

All newcomers go through it, especially freshmen looking to burst onto the scene right away. While he had plenty of nerves, Aydin Palmer was glad he got to experience them at the JUCO level.

Through his first few outings at Florence-Darlington Technical College, Palmer was clearly struggling on the mound. He wasn’t making it deep into his starts and surrendering more runs that he would’ve liked. But he remained confident in his abilities and knew things would soon click for him.

“That made me so much stronger than I think I would’ve been anywhere else, because you’re busting it everyday, you’ve got to earn the things you want, especially playing junior college baseball. I mean, it really toughens you up and really makes you appreciate the opportunities you do get,” Palmer told GamecockCentral.

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With about two months left in the season, the team made a trip to Spartanburg Methodist College for a big four-game series. Palmer, who was coming off a one-run outing his last time out, would make the start in game two.

Having more confidence under his belt, he tossed six innings of three-run ball, striking out six and walking one. This is when he felt like he was finally adapting to the college game.

By season’s end, Palmer had completely turned it around. He finished 9-3 with a 4.18 ERA in 14 starts. He struck out 77 and walked 30 in 60.1 innings pitched. From the start of the year to the final outing, he called it “a complete 360.”

“I think a lot of that comes from the mental side and just having that mental toughness and mental fortitude,” Palmer said. “I’ve always been able to pitch and that’s something I had to remind myself. Just because I’m dealing with a little adversity doesn’t mean I’m not a good pitcher. Once I learned how to have a dominant presence and I could truly hold that dominant presence on the mound, that’s kind of how I ended my summer too.”

Palmer’s good outings carried into the summer where he played for the Danville Otterbots. In his final start, he went five innings without allowing a run on two hits.

“That was a dominant five innings,” he said. “That to me made me realize how much work I put in and how much better I’ve grown as a pitcher over the last year.”

Shortly after Palmer got back home, South Carolina caught wind of what he had been up to and was interested in bringing him aboard.

“It was Coach Monte (Lee) who reached out. I’ve known Coach Monte, he’s been watching me since high school. I felt like I’ve kind of proven myself at this point and shown the things I’m capable of, and I believe he believed that too,” Palmer said.

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But the Gamecocks weren’t the only school looking at him. Palmer said Florida reached out to him as well with his decision coming down to two prominent SEC programs.

“That was a tough decision to make,” said Palmer, who officially committed to South Carolina on Wednesday. “But I wanted to stay home. That’s special for me to be home.”

For South Carolina, it’s been a busy offseason bringing in multiple transfers, pitching specifically. Palmer becomes the eighth pitcher to join the Gamecocks from JUCO/transfer portal. He’s also the fifth left-hander brought in, something they were lacking in this past season.

“I think the first thing people are going to notice is I’ve got a pretty calm confident approach out there. I compete in the zone, I love to throw my fastball, I love to throw my changeup, and I’ve really figured a curveball out over the summer — like a really good, consistent curveball,” Palmer said. “And I’m also trying to add a slider in there. I feel like that’ll be useful to a left-hander. … Looking at velocity ranges, fastball’s going to be 89 up to 93 right now. I’ve definitely got more in me. It’s kind of an arm side ride fastball. I love to throw it, it’s got good spin on it.”

When he gets to Columbia in the fall, Palmer knows the level of competition is only going to become tougher. He understands he’ll have to continue to develop his craft to pitch in the SEC.

“The things I’m doing well such as command in the zone and having a good presence up there, working with the pitch clock. Those are things I want to continue to do,” he said. “But also, I want to be able to throw all three pitches confidently for strikes. I think that’s important to have a three-pitch mix as well as continue to learn how to read hitters, thinking about the smaller details of the game. And I think being that cognitive will help.”

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