Another South Carolina baseball pitcher was taken in the 2024 MLB Draft

The 2024 MLB Draft already has been a big one for South Carolina baseball fans.

Top high school signee PJ Morlando (Miami Marlins; Round 1, Pick 16), All-American catcher Cole Messina (Colorado Rockies; Round 3, Pick 77), and top junior college signee Brandon Clarke (Boston Red Sox; Round 5, Pick 148) all were taken early in the proceedings.

When the 7th round of the MLB Draft rolled around, Eli Jones became the next Gamecock who heard his name called as he was taken with the 218th overall pick by the Minnesota Twins.

Jones, a junior right-handed pitcher who spent most of the 2024 season as the Gamecocks' first option in the starting rotation, had Tommy John surgery in 2021, missed most of 2022, and then had two different pitching coaches in 2023 and 2024, potentially hampering him from reaching his ceiling as a pitcher. He still posted a solid strikeout-walk ratio during his time in garnet and black, indicating that he has more in the tank to offer a professional organization.

The Twins are an organization that needed to add more pitching through the draft, but Jones was just the second hurler that the franchise picked in the 2024 MLB Draft (and he was the first right-handed pitcher the Twins took).

It is important to note that Eli Jones is not completely out of college eligibility. After three years in Columbia, Jones could return to the Gamecocks again in 2025 for one last ride with the garnet and black. However, he is expected to make over $250,000 as a signing bonus with Twins, money that is hard for anyone to pass up just to go back to college.

There will be more Gamecocks taken in the draft before the event is over, and there will be more Gamecock signees taken, as well.