Another South Carolina athlete is continuing his baseball career with the New York Mets, as he signed a deal with the team after being selected in the third round of the Major League Baseball draft.
Carlos Cortes is only a sophomore but has secured the opportunity his career to new heights.
Cortes was drafted by the Mets to play second baseman. He was ranked the 177th best prospect in the draft by Baseball America coming off a 44 RBI season. Cortes was also named to the 2018 Preseason All-SEC second team, 2018 Baseball America Third-Team Preseason All-American team and 2017 SEC All-Freshman team.
Cortes received a signing bonus of $1,038,000. He will be joining former Gamecock Adam Hill, who also recently signed with the Mets.
One of Cortes' main goals this season was to improve in the outfield and stick to his normal swing, and he did just that, making a positive impact on his draft stock.
He will start in the minor leagues with the Kingsport Mets or the Brooklyn Cyclones. The Mets have shown an interest in him before. Cortes was selected by the Mets in the 20th round in 2016.