Where South Carolina baseball's roster sits currently

It’s been a frenzied few weeks for South Carolina baseball.

A few days after the season ended, news trickled out about Mark Kingston returning for the 2023 season.

Since then it’s been a whirlwind few weeks as players enter the portal and commit to South Carolina. As it goes on, here’s a preliminary look at what the roster might look like moving forward early in the offseason.

Catchers (4)

Returning: Cole Messina, Connor Cino

Leaving: Colin Burgess (transfer portal)

Incoming: Zander Buchan, Jonathan French (transfer)

Biggest draft risks: N/A

The skinny: This is a position South Carolina is going to target in the portal, evidenced by bringing in Clemson transfer Jonathan French to the class. It’s a position incredibly young and unproven now with the departure of Burgess. French, who just finished his second season of college baseball, will be asked to catch a lot and perform much better than he did at Clemson. The Gamecocks are hoping to tap into the potential that made him a top 100 prospect out of high school. Cole Messina was someone who came in with plenty of hype around him and Buchan has a chance to compete for innings as a switch hitter. Cino caught in high school but played some outfield when healthy last season.

Left-handed pitchers (6)

Returning: Matthew Becker, Julian Bosnic, Jackson Phipps

Leaving: John Gilreath (graduation), Michael Esposito (leaving team)

Incoming: Blaise Grove, Adam Serwinowski, Trey Wheeler

Biggest draft risks: Julian Bosnic

The skinny: Having quality left-handed depth has been an issue recently for the Gamecocks, but there are a few good pieces next season. Becker had a solid freshman season in a tough role, and Phipps is a top 200 prospect coming off Tommy John surgery. Bosnic is listed as returning, although it looks like he might want to opt to start his professional career. Grove and Wheeler could be two arms who chisel out reliever roles early.

Infielders (8)

Returning: Kevin Madden, Braylen Wimmer, Talmadge LeCroy, Michael Braswell

Leaving: Jalen Vasquez (transfer portal), Vito Valincius (transfer portal)

Incoming: Jacob Compton (transfer portal), Ethan Petry, Will Tippett, Chris Veach (transfer portal)

Biggest draft risks: Braylen Wimmer, Ethan Petry

The skinny: Like Bosnic, Wimmer will get drafted high and will likely opt for professional baseball. Outside of that, the Gamecocks likely return All-Freshman shortstop Michael Braswell and Kevin Madden who started at third before an elbow issue forced him to play first base. LeCroy had his ups and downs in year one.

Hanging on to Petry, a top 100 player, and getting quality development or at-bats from Tippett and Veach will be big. The biggest bat might be Compton, a lefty, who will compete immediately for the first base spot and as a left-handed option in the middle of the order.

Outfielders (6)

Returning: Carson Hornung, Evan Stone, Josiah Sightler, David Cromer

Leaving: Andrew Eyster (graudation), Brandt Belk (graduation), Matt Hogan (transfer portal), Elijah Lambros (transfer portal), Thad Ector (transfer portal)

Incoming: Dylan Brewer (transfer portal), Caleb Denny (transfer portal), Connor Fuhrman

Biggest draft risks: Josiah Sightler

The skinny: This is the most glaring position of need for South Carolina this offseason, losing both Belk and Eyster paired with three transfer portal defections. Hornung is a promising left-handed bat and Stone had a great defensive but inconsistent offensive season.

The Gamecocks hope Clemson transfer Brewer can tap into some potential, but this will be another spot South Carolina mines for in the portal. Getting Sightler back for 2023 would be huge for the Gamecocks offensively. The loudest addition is Denny, who hit over .330 at Oral Roberts with 11 home runs. He will be a huge piece in the middle of South Carolina’s order.

Right-handed pitchers (16)

Returning: Jack Mahoney, Cade Austin, Noah Hall, James Hicks, Eli Jones, Will Sanders, Wes Sweatt, Brett Thomas

Leaving: Sam Simpson (transfer portal), Cam Tringali (graduation), Parker Coyne (graduation), Aidan Hunter (transfer portal), CJ Weins (transfer portal)

Incoming: Dylan Eskew (JUCO), Eli Jerzembeck, Connor McCreery, Logan Plasencia, Austin Williamson, Zac Zedalis, Nick Proctor (transfer portal), Ricky Williams (transfer portal)

Biggest draft risks: Noah Hall, Eli Jerzembeck

The skinny: South Carolina didn’t lose a lot here, and actually have a wealth of talent and experience returning here. Will Sanders headlines the group, a projected top-round pick after next season. Noah Hall was also fantastic last season along with Freshman All-American Cade Austin. Getting Jack Mahoney and James Hicks back to themselves after Tommy John surgery.

A lot of the incomers have a chance to earn innings early, especially Jerzembeck and Eskew. Holding on to Jerzembeck and getting Hall back for another season could be a boon for the pitching staff. Proctor and Williams will both likely pitch big innings out of the bullpen.