There is a seemingly never-ending list of South Carolina baseball alums who have made it to Major League Baseball. Many of them played for Ray Tanner and the back-to-back National Champion Gamecocks of 2010 and 2011. One of the best current Gamecocks in the Show is Arizona Diamondbacks first baseman Christian Walker.
Walker had his best season as a professional last year in 2022 when he hit 32 home runs and won the National League Gold Glove award for first basemen. In 2023, CWalk is off to a hot start again as he has already hit 7 home runs in just 29 games.
On Wednesday, he put together his best game of the year. Walker blasted two balls over the fence in the Diamondbacks’ victory on the road against the Texas Rangers and made a nice play in the field at first base. Getting on base three times, he finished with 5 RBI and 3 runs scored on the day. The first long ball was a screaming line drive to left field that just squeaked over the fence, and the second was a majestic fly ball over the center field wall.
The big game could be a sign of Walker starting a nice run at the plate as he also hit a home run yesterday for Arizona.
During his Gamecock career, Christian Walker was one of the best hitters to ever play in Columbia. Walker hit for a career .336 average and had 80 extra-base hits in his three years in garnet and black, despite playing injured at times in his Carolina career. Walker made the All-SEC team each of his three seasons and was one of the best players on South Carolina’s back-to-back National Championship squads.