Holmes, Belcher announced as part of weekend rotation
The Michael Roth and Matt Price comparisons are unfair, but they won’t stop for South Carolina’s pitching staff. In Jordan Montgomery, Colby Holmes and Tyler Webb, the Gamecocks found the perfect trio to handle the expectations.
Though the three will be entering new roles to replace key members of the two national championship teams, all three have experience for USC on some of the brightest stages.
“Last year, we had all those guys to lean on, and this year, me and Colby and a few other guys are going to be people that they’re leaning on ... now, so I guess we’re just going to have to take over the reins and just pitch like we always do,” Montgomery said.
Baby-faced Montgomery will be taking the mound on Opening Day instead of a spirited Roth. Montgomery once admitted to struggling to grow a beard, but after a freshman season in which he had a 3.62 ERA and a 6-1 record, he’s separated himself as the ace of the pitching staff.
Holmes will be the Saturday starter, and senior left-hander Nolan Belcher has been announced as the Sunday starter for opening weekend after competing with freshman Jack Wynkoop for the spot. Coach Chad Holbrook said Webb will start the season as the closer.
Holmes has started on Sundays in the weekend rotation for two years and Webb had the lowest ERA (1.56) on last year’s team with 57.2 innings pitched in relief. Though Montgomery, Holmes and Webb will all be familiar faces to the fans, they’re still feeling the pressure to replace Roth and Price.
“We just have to take it and run,” Holmes said. “We did lose them, but we have two guys coming in (who are) going to fill their spots and the crowd is going to be pleased with whatever happens.”
Holbrook said the strength of the pitching staff is the depth with Wynkoop standing out as a top freshman and sophomores Joel Seddon and Evan Beal returning after pitching considerable innings last season. Holbrook said he thinks Belcher is back in his form prior to his Tommy John’s surgery. Belcher pitched 29.2 innings last season with a 2.12 ERA. Montgomery has changed the most in the postseason, getting physically stronger and fine-tuning his mechanics. He bears the brunt of the comparisons to Roth because they’re both left-handers and share similarities in pitching styles.
Pitching coach Jerry Meyers said the two are also similar in their workout mentality, as Meyers often saw Roth push himself — maybe a little too hard — in the weight room. Montgomery has done the same during the offseason.
“He sometimes does more than what we’re asking to do and we have to reel him back in a little bit just because he does drive himself in the weight room and with conditioning,” Meyers said. “He’s put himself in a category where he’s made a little bit of a jump, it appears. Now, he has to go out there and do it for real.
“With the experience factor for him, he’s pitched on a big stage and handled himself well, so we’re going to need that to translate.”
Like Roth at the start of his fame, Montgomery was thrown into several high-pressure situations last season, handling himself well despite his youth and inexperience. The Gamecocks expect him and the rest of the pitching staff to the same in similar circumstances this season.
“Jordan is never in awe of the situation,” Holbrook said. “As a freshman he was terrific against Clemson with all the pressure in the world on him. With the nation watching in Omaha, he threw great against Arkansas. He’s a potential Friday night guy. We know that when we put Jordan Montgomery out there, we’ll have a chance to win the game.”