In the weeks since Paul Mainieri took over, South Carolina has addressed many of the holes on its roster ahead of next season.
While the transfer portal has been “closed” since July 2, that only meant players had until then to put their name into the portal. Since then, there’s still been some movement going on for the Gameco*cks.
Here’s the most recent update to the transfer portal tracker.
Players who entered the transfer portal
Jevarra Martin — left-handed pitcher
Martin entered the portal on May 31. He only appeared in one game for South Carolina in 2024. On Feb. 17 against Miami (OH), he gave up two runs on 15 pitches thrown.
Jackson Phipps — left-handed pitcher
Phipps entered the portal on June 4. He’s been with the program since 2021, where he made 12 appearances as a freshman. He missed the entire 2022 campaign before returning in 2023 to pitch in nine games. Over 21 total appearances, the left-hander owns a 6.64 ERA with 27 strikeouts and 13 walks. Phipps committed to Jacksonville State.
Carson Hornung — infielder
Hornung entered the portal on June 4. In three seasons at South Carolina, he slashed .227/.412/.347 with six homers and 39 RBI in 96 games. He saw a significant decrease in his role this season, only appearing in seven games and totaling eight at-bats.
Austin Williamson — right-handed pitcher
Williamson entered the portal on June 4. As a freshman in 2023, the right-hander pitched to a 3.05 ERA in 20.2 innings with 25 strikeouts and seven walks. But he only appeared in three games as a sophom*ore and finished with an 11.57 ERA. He last pitched in a game on Feb. 24 vs. Belmont.
Tristan Salinas — infielder
Salinas entered the portal on June 4. He didn’t appear in any games for South Carolina this season. He was the No. 6 middle infielder and the No. 21 overall player in North Carolina in the class of 2023 by Perfect Game.
Tyler Zedalis — first baseman
Zedalis entered the portal on June 6. He played in three games for the Gameco*cks in 2024. He went 0-for-2 at the plate and didn’t play again after March 10.Zedalis committed to Old Dominion.
Drake Quinn — right-handed pitcher
Quinn entered the portal on June 18. The Marist transfer made nine appearances out of the bullpen in 2024. He pitched to a 6.30 ERA over 10 innings and struck out 11 with six walks.
Connor McCreery — right-handed pitcher
McCreery entered the portal on July 2. In two seasons at South Carolina, he pitched to a 4.56 ERA in 23 games over 25.2 innings. He struck out 27 and walked 19 as a key bullpen arm for the Gameco*cks. Now, he’ll head to Texas as the Longhorns begin their first season in the SEC.
Lee Ellis — infielder
It has now been confirmed by the program that Ellis did indeed enter the portal over the weekend. In 17 games, he hit .273/.464/.364 with eight hits in 22 at-bats.
Incoming transfers from JUCO/portal
Caleb Jones — right-handed pitcher
Jones entered the portal on May 25 and committed to South Carolina. He spent the last three seasons at Winthrop, where he went 2-3 with a 6.87 ERA over 73.1 innings. He struck out 72 and walked 29.
Cayden Gaskin — infielder
Gaskin committed to South Carolina on June 12. The JUCO product hit .403 with seven home runs, 59 RBI, and 73 runs scored in 55 games played this past season at Northwest Florida State College.
Dalton Mashore — outfielder
Mashore entered the portal on June 3 and committed to the Gameco*cks. Originally from Saint Mary’s, he hit .338 with 13 homers and 41 RBI, showing off some good power in 56 games this year. He finished with a team-leading 11 stolen bases and fielded .994 with just one error.
Jase Woita — third baseman/right-handed pitcher
Woita comes from Kansas City Community College, where he put up strong numbers in two years. He hit .417 with 23 homers and 138 RBI in 101 career games. He’s listed as a two-way player on the team’s website, though he hasn’t logged any pitching statistics.
Brandon Stone — right-handed pitcher
Stone comes from Johnson County Community College and ranks as the top JUCO pitcher, according toDream Big Athletics. He’s 6-foot-6, 220 pounds, already making him one of the bigger pitchers on the team. In 18 starts this year, Stone went 14-1 with a 3.28 ERA. He struck out 113 and only walked 19.
Brandon Clarke — left-handed pitcher
Clarke pitched at State College of Florida this year, where he went 6-2 with a 4.36 ERA over 74.1 innings. He struck out 107 and walked 35.
Jackson Soucie — right-handed pitcher
Soucie comes from Wabash Valley College. In 10 appearances (three starts), he went 2-0 with a 5.04 ERA in 25 innings this year. He struck out 37 and walked 14. He also had one save and gave up three homers.
Wyatt Evans — left-handed pitcher
Evans last pitched in 2022 for Tennessee, where he pitched to a 2.25 ERA in 19 appearances out of the bullpen. He struck out 22 and walked three, while opponents hit just .211. He clocks in at a staggering 6-foot-6, 245 pounds. He’s a local product from Greenville, playing his high school baseball at J.L. Mann.
Ashton Crowther — left-handed pitcher
Crowther previously pitched at Miami. As a redshirt freshman, he went 1-4 with a 7.36 ERA in 36.2 innings this season. He appeared in 15 games and made seven starts. His longest outing came against Florida Atlantic on April 2 when he pitched 6.1 innings of two-run ball. He allowed 29 free passes compared to 28 punch outs. But he seems to be able to keep the ball in the ballpark as he only surrendered four home runs.
Nathan Hall — outfielder
Hall, a Lexington native, spent the last two seasons with Clemson, where he played in 51 games. He hit .240/.327/.313 with one homer and 15 RBI in 96 career at-bats. He plays all three outfield positions, playing 25 career games in right field, 13 in center and 12 in left.
Jarvis Evans — left-handed pitcher
Evans spent the last two seasons at Georgia. The 6-foot-4, 214 pounder went 5-2 with a 5.22 ERA over 60.1 career innings. In 2024, he made eight starts in 16 appearances and pitched to a 5.49 ERA. He struck out 47, walked 27 and gave up seven home runs. Opponents batted .255 against him.
Charlie Meglio — infielder
Meglio comes from Campbell, where he made the CAA All-Rookie team as a freshman in 2024. He hit .275/.399/.475 with nine homers and 28 RBI in 160 at-bats. He made 43 starts on the left side of the infield, playing 31 games at third base and 15 at shortstop.
Henry Kaczmar — infielder
Kaczmar entered the portal back on June 18 and committed to South Carolina on July 2. In two seasons at Ohio State, he hit .307/.398/.407 with 14 homers and 82 RBI. He played 55 games at shortstop for the Buckeyes in 2024 and should certainly compete for the starting spot with the Gameco*cks.
Nolan Nawrocki — infielder
South Carolina continued to hammer on bringing in new infielders with the addition of Nawrocki. In 36 games this season, the Clemson transfer hit .264/.352/.400 with four homers and 24 RBI. He struck out 29 times and walked 13. He also was a perfect 11-for-11 in stolen bases. He figures to be competing for reps at third base next season. Though, he can also play shortstop.
Max Kaufer — catcher
More likely than not, Cole Messina will be heading to the pros after the upcoming MLB Draft. And that means there will be a huge void behind the plate next season. South Carolina does have Ryan Bakes returning but went out and added Kaufer, a Texas A&M transfer.
Kaufer hit .250/.516/.500 with one homer and five RBI in 14 games in 2024. He served as the backup to starting catcher Jackson Appel. The year prior, he played much more and hit .183 with a homer and 12 RBI in 46 games.
Aydin Palmer — left-handed pitcher
Palmer becomes the most recent commit, coming from Florence-Darlington Technical College. As a freshman, he went 9-3 with a 4.18 ERA in 14 starts. He struck out 77 and walked 30 in 60.1 innings pitched.
This story will be updated.
