Coach Chad Holbrook will have a hard time shuffling a deep group of highly athletic outfielders into three spots when making out his lineup card.
Junior Gene Cone will provide the outfield with some prior experience. Cone had the fourth-highest average at the end of last season and has the highest of those returning this year. He hit .257 in 2015 with 55 hits, four doubles, two triples and two home runs.
The biggest thing to watch for is this year’s freshman class. South Carolina has the No. 2 recruiting class in the nation this year by Collegiate Baseball. The class has 19 players, eight of whom were selected in the 2015 MLB Draft but wanted to attend college first. After losing some pretty major players at the end of last year, picking up some of these impressive newcomers could really make a difference for the Gamecocks.
Freshman Danny Blair will be one of those to look for in the outfield this season. Blair was ranked No. 143 high school prospect and No. 30 best high school outfielder in the nation by Perfect Game. He is expected to be a big bat and give the Gamecocks some desperate help in the hitting department.
Freshman Brandon McIlwain is also expected to be a huge powerhouse for South Carolina. McIlwain made headlines by enrolling early at South Carolina to play both baseball and football. He’s already shown his powerful bat when he hit two homers in a Garnet-Black scrimmage at the end of January.
Dom Thompson-Williams is yet another hyper-athletic outfielder Holbrook will try to get into the lineup. Thompson-Williams also has a football background. Thompson-Williams played last season at Iowa Western Community College.