South Carolina baseball star officially signs first MLB contract

Last week, the MLB Draft came and went, and three current South Carolina baseball players and three Gamecock signees were taken during the three-day event (and several more would have been had they not made it clear they wanted to go to school).

The first USC pick in the draft was Gamecock All-American catcher Cole Messina, who was selected in the 3rd round of the draft by the Colorado Rockies (77th overall).

Messina had played just three years with the South Carolina baseball program, meaning he was eligible to return to school for his senior season if he did not receive the type of contract he was looking for after being drafted.

According to a Monday report from Baseball America's Carlos Collazo, Gamecock fans can stop hoping for Messina's unlikely return as the elite backstop has inked his first contract with the Colorado Rockies organization. Messina will make $1,011,900 as his signing bonus, which is right at slot value for where he was taken in the draft. Cole Messina will begin his professional baseball career this summer.

During his South Carolina baseball career, Messina was one of the greatest catchers in program history. As a two-year starter, the Summerville, South Carolina native posted a ridiculous career slash line of .305/.436/.625/1.060 and smacked 38 home runs, 37 doubles, and 2 triples while scoring 128 runs, driving in 137 RBI, walking 94 times, and stealing 16 bases on 20 attempts.

Messina also was one of the top defensive catchers in college baseball. He is a plus-athlete at the position, and his defensive analytics numbers ranked at #1 or #2 in the country for almost the entire 2024 season.

He is everything a team could want in a catcher prospect, and with the Rockies organization, Messina will be reunited with former teammates Jack Mahoney (who had his best pitching numbers with Messina as his catcher) and Braylen Wimmer.