South Carolina Baseball: Gamecocks receive mid-season honors
By Kevin Miller
South Carolina baseball is off to one of its best starts in program history, and this weekend’s series against LSU is set to be one of college baseball’s biggest series of the year. The 27-3 Gamecocks are among the nation’s leaders in home runs and runs scored, so it’s no surprise that two of their offensive engines are receiving recognition for their play.
On Wednesday, USA Baseball announced its midseason Gold Spikes Award watch list. The Gold Spikes award is given annually to College Baseball’s top player, and at the mid-season point of the 2023 season, the Gamecocks have two players on the watch list. 1B/DH Gavin Casas and RF/DH Ethan Petry were placed on the watch list.
Casas, a Vanderbilt transfer, is a junior left-hander who has been in the top-5 nationally in home runs all season. His 15 long balls lead the Gamecocks (who lead the nation with 7 more dingers than the second-place Florida Gators). Casas boasts a slash line of .308/.449/.785/1.234.
Ethan Petry is a true freshman right-hander who is playing in the outfield for the first time ever. Despite the new position, Petry has been the best freshman bat in America. His 47 hits and 42 RBI pace the Gamecocks. Petry’s slash line is a remarkable .439/.496/.841/1.337, and he also has come up with multiple clutch moments for South Carolina this season.
Kip Bouknight is the only South Carolina Gamecock to win the Golden Spikes Award. The starting pitcher won the honor when he went 17-1 in 2000 to lead college baseball.
Former USC pitcher & Brookland-Cayce HS grad Kip Bouknight is part of the 2015 class of the SC Athletic Hall of Fame pic.twitter.com/2SZsQQdMg4
— Reggie Anderson (@ReggieWLTX) February 24, 2015
Petry was also announced as the D1Baseball mid-season freshman of the year. Among first-year players, no one has more home runs, RBI, hits or a higher batting average or slugging percentage. Petry is among the country’s best offensive players, regardless of age, so his selection as mid-season freshman of the year comes as no surprise.
For Gamecock fans interested in the LSU series this weekend (and the weather that could impact it), no announcements have been made regarding any schedule changes.