As the new pitching coach, Skylar Meade has not only had to fill the starting rotation spots, but also test out the arms in the bullpen. Another big loss last season to the MLB Draft was Tyler Johnson. Johnson was a powerful closer for the Gamecocks, who will always be remembered for his magical performance in 2016. In a winner moves on regional game at home, Johnson got the start and pitched his first complete game of his career that advanced the Gamecocks to the Super Regionals.
While Meade and head coach Mark Kingston may not have found anyone with that pitching caliber during preseason, they have been able to pinpoint some players who will be able to start to fill that void. With such a young bullpen, the process has not been easy for South Carolina.
Junior Eddy Demurias is a player that Kingston has had on his mind while struggling to find a player to fulfill Johnson's shoes.
“Much like our starters, that’s to be determined," Kingston said. "When you don’t return guys in roles, then you have to put them in those situations to see who handles it best. Eddy Demurias is obviously one of the guys we’ll look at there."
In addition to Demurias, Ridge Chapman and Logan Chapman are players that Kingston has his eye on to secure the position. While Kingston named Ridge Chapman to start on Sunday, he'll also look to Sawyer Bridges to fill the bullpen.
"Bridges is a guy we will look at there so far he has looked really good," Kingston said. "He may have the stuff and the makeup to be a guy that can be looked at. We’ll have options, it’s just a matter of who is the best option and that is what the next three weeks is for is to try and figure it out."
Despite the scrimmages and inner squads, Kingston makes it clear that you never are exactly sure until the lights are turned on and fans are cheering to get a whole new perspective and look.
“You can have a closer that has great stuff," Kingston said. "If he’s not a competitor, if he doesn’t love the ball in the ninth inning with 10,000 fans, maybe he’s not a closure type.”
The act of selecting the right players for this spot is crucial and will not come overnight for Kingston and his staff.
The pressure is on for South Carolina to find what players are going to step up and execute fully for this season. Kingston addresses how their cannot be any room for an opponent to capitalize on mistakes and win the game. He is already aware of the potential that key players have, but the staff will have to figure out which guys will throw the most strikes, the most quality strikes and minimize free passes.
“Our job is to continue to evaluate where guys are and at the end of the day figure out how the pieces of the puzzle fit together," Kingston said. "We can go into it with an idea, but then evaluate as we go.”