Junior goes deep for second straight night
By nature, baseball players are superstitious.
One of the common ways in which ballplayers demonstrate this fact is attempting to break a slump through by any one of various “slump-busting” techniques.
Some slump-busting methods are simple and dull. Others are unsavory and unfit for print. No matter the case, players believe in them.
Mired in a 0-19 slump entering Tuesday’s game against College of Charleston, USC outfielder Jackie Bradley Jr. decided he was going to have a special meal in order to try and cure his woes at the plate.
So, he headed to Chick-fil-A for some food. Later in the day, two hits, including a three-run home run, followed in USC’s 24-4 win.
Bradley headed back for some more Wednesday, and he then had more success at the plate that night, hitting a two-run shot in the first inning as part of another two-hit game.
“1:30 on the dot [Wednesday], I was at Chick-fil-A in Five Points,” Bradley said. “Asked them for the No. 3, with the milkshake afterwards to go.”
A No. 3 consists of a spicy chicken sandwich and waffle fries. Bradley revealed his drink of choice was Hi-C Fruit Punch. He said he’s hopeful he can find one in Gainesville, Fla., where the Gamecocks will have a three-game set with No. 1 Florida this weekend.
The home run, Bradley’s sixth of the year, carried added significance. It was Bradley’s 200th hit in a Carolina uniform. Bradley ended the game with 201 hits, leaving him tied with volunteer coach Brian Buscher on the school’s all-time hits list.
Mac White, who played center field at USC from 1991 to 1994, is the school’s all-time hits leader with 303.
Native Rhody: USC outfielder Evan Marzilli, a native of Cranston, R.I., got the opportunity to face some familiar faces as his home state’s flagship university came to Columbia.
“It’s great to face kids I played high school ball with,” Marzilli said. “A couple of them were on my high school team. It was a lot of fun. It meant a lot.”
Milestone win: Wednesday’s win was coach Ray Tanner’s 650th at South Carolina. Tanner is 1,045-459 overall in his career.
Anderson suspended: Freshman outfielder DeSean Anderson, a High Point, N.C., native, was suspended indefinitely Wednesday for academic reasons.
Anderson, who chose to enroll at USC despite being selected by the Boston Red Sox in the 30th round of the 2010 MLB Draft, has only appeared in three games this season and has yet to make a plate appearance.
Tanner proud: After several players and team staffers shaved their heads to raise money for Camp Kemo, a charity for cancer research, during the day, Tanner praised their efforts after the game.
“It’s a feel good [moment],” Tanner said. “It’s a class act by those players. They did that on their own. They weren’t pushed to do it. They understand the cause, and they stepped up and did that. I’m proud of them for doing that. That’s a nice thing.”