Season Preview: Can Pitching Cure Clemson's Regional Blues in 2021?
It's been more than a decade since the Clemson baseball program has advanced past the regional round of the NCAA Tournament.
If the Tigers are going to end that drought in 2021, they will likely need to rely on what appears to be the strength of his team, the pitching.
Entering his sixth season at the helm, Clemson head coach Monte Lee's team heads into Opening Day with arguably the most talented, and deepest pitching staff he's had to date.
The fact that true freshmen Ty Olenchuk and Caden Grice have won spots in the weekend rotation points to just how deep this staff potentially could be.
A three-year starter, and right-hander, Davis Sharpe will be the guy Lee turns to on Fridays, with the right-handed Olenchuk pitching on Saturdays, and the lefty Grice going on Sundays. Redshirt freshman Carter Raffield, another right-handed pitcher will start the season as the midweek starter.
"We are not afraid to start a guy when he is a freshman,” Lee said. “Davis started on Fridays when he was a freshman. I can remember we were up at Boston College and he was dominant on the road as a starter, as a true freshman. So, it does not worry me whatsoever to start a guy that is a true freshman if they are ready for it.”
With two freshmen winning starting jobs, that leaves the Tigers with a lot of experience in the bullpen. Mat Clark and Keyshawn Askew give Clemson two veteran lefty's they can turn to in relief, while Jackson Lindley, Rob Hughes, a transfer from Furman, and Evan Estridge are three veteran right-handed options.
"Evan Estridge is by far the most improved pitcher on our staff," Lee said. "We feel like he's going to have a major, major impact on this team. His velocity and stuff has increased dramatically."
There's also a number of talented arms that are still underclassmen. Nick Hoffman gave Clemson some valuable innings last season, as did RHP Nick Clayton, and both are redshirt freshmen. Another guy that is now in his second season in the program is RHP Mack Anglin, considered one of the crown jewels of the 2019 recruiting class.
Geoffrey Gilbert, another second-year player, is the guy Lee has tabbed to take over the closer's role. In 12.2 IP, the left-handed Gilbert posted a minuscule 0.71 ERA in the shortened 2020 season. He was one of the most reliable pitchers out of the bullpen as a freshman last season.
"Geoffrey is going to be a major, major piece for us," Lee said. "He's tough as nails, he's a competitor, he's been in high leverage situations already."
As for the offense, there's also a lot of depth there, and Lee will have more than one option at multiple positions depending on the opponent and starting pitcher that day.
Grice and Sharpe, both two-way players, will be splitting time at first base and DH on the days they aren't pitching. Sharpe was one of Clemson's more consistent hitters last year, hitting .311 in the shortened season, while Grice is expected to provide the team with some power at the plate.
"He's incredibly strong, so when he touches the ball he can hit it out from pole to pole," Lee said about Grice. "He can hit it a long, long way. He's raw as a hitter, he's gonna swing and miss some, gonna strike out some, but he is a better pure hitter right now than he was in the fall."
Kier Meredith, Bryar Hawkins, James Parker and Dylan Brewer are all players who are back that were on their way to having productive seasons last season for the Tigers. Adam Hackenberg, Sam Hall, and Elijah Henderson are also back and will be relied upon to produce at the plate. Hackenburg and Hall are both injured to start this season.
With teams playing just 50-game schedules this season, the Tigers will have fewer non-conference games to work out any kinks. After hosting Cincinnati at home to open the season, the annual Palmetto Series with the South Carolina Gamecocks is scheduled to be played next weekend.
After that, the Tigers head straight into conference play, and some of their toughest ACC series will be played on the road. Clemson will make trips to North Carolina State, Miami, Florida State, and Georgia Tech. All teams picked by the ACC media to finish ahead of Clemson in the standings.
Clemson will play host to Notre Dame, Virginia Tech, Virginia, Wake Forest, Louisville and Duke, while also playing a home-and-home midweek series against Georgia.
"We are looking forward to Friday and Opening Day, and opening weekend against a really good Cincinnati club," Lee said. "We are just excited to get started."