Clemson Star Pitcher Aidan Knaak Foregoes MLB, Returns For Senior Season

Over the course of this offseason, head coach Erik Bakich has been all about retention for Clemson baseball. Fortunately, the team received some positive news to help with that on Monday.

Star pitcher Aidan Knaak announced on his social media that he is returning for his senior season, doing so right before Monday’s 5 p.m. deadline. All players who were selected in the 2026 MLB Draft must decide before this time, and Knaak decided to use another year at Doug Kingsmore Stadium.

BET ON YOURSELF!

Well after being drafted in the 5th round @aidan_knaak opts to return for another year of college baseball!!

The @ClemsonBaseball righty will return to Tiger Town to look to improve upon an already established career pic.twitter.com/7SlyQAaEWp
— Jack DeLongchamps (@JDelongchamps) July 27, 2026

The report first came out from TheClemsonInsider’s Jason Priester. Knaak then confirmed it later in the afternoon. It comes after being selected by the Milwaukee Brewers in the fifth round of this year’s event.

“I’m extremely grateful to the Brewers for believing in me and offering an incredible opportunity,” he said in the post. “After a lot of reflection, I’ve decided to return to Clemson for my senior year.”

In his first two years with the Tigers, Knaak shattered program records for an underclassman. The Fort Myers, Fla., native was a two-time First Team All-ACC player in 2024-25 as a freshman and sophomore, being the first player in program history to achieve so. Knaak also broke a freshman record for strikeouts, recording 108 in his opening season with the program.

2026 was a different year for the righty, though. He finished 2-6 as a starting pitcher, seeing career-lows in innings pitched (57.1), strikeouts (88) and earned run average (5.81). However, going back to Clemson means that Knaak has some unfinished business heading into his fourth season with the program.

Knaak was also the first Tiger off the board in this year’s draft. Being one of five selected across the 20 rounds of the event, which took place at the end of June. Especially with the pitching system that Milwaukee has had over the last several years, there was doubt that the righty would return to Clemson for his final season.

Instead, it ends up being a massive help for Bakich, getting the only piece back who was a part of the starting rotation from last season.

Knaak will also come back to the program with two years of eligibility remaining. Due to the five-year eligibility rule, and the righty not redshirting in 2024, it means that he has the capability of playing in the 2028 season. Of course, he could decide to go to the draft next year, but for a Tiger team that struggled in 2026, any help is vital.

Bakich will look to get his main pitcher back to the performances that he was showing in his first two seasons. Only time will tell if that’s the case.

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