Mark Kingston’s approach to Clemson: ‘It’s a great series,’ but no added pressure
It’s considered one of the great rivalries of the sport. An intense, bitter clash every year that’s included some truly memorable moments.
But South Carolina baseball coach Mark Kingston is stepping back and keeping some perspective on his team’s upcoming clash with Clemson this weekend. When asked on the eve of Friday’s series-opener if he and his players felt any added pressure to win the series, especially after losing the past four sets, he dismissed the idea.
“Pressure is having to feed your family, pressure is dealing with health issues, pressure is bigger things in this world,” Kingston said. “We’re playing baseball, it’s a great series, it’s a tremendous opportunity and we’re gonna try to win it, no more, no less.”
With that in mind, fans shouldn’t expect USC to do anything different or extraordinary in mind to win. In Kingston’s mind, if the Gamecocks had another gear or level of play they could reach for the series, they’d already be at it from the beginning of the season.
“I know people want to say you do more and it means more. It means a lot to our fans, and we appreciate that very much, and it means a lot to our players, especially the ones who have grown up in this state,” Kingston said. “But I’m a believer that if you have to change something this week to try to improve your chances of winning this series, than you’re not doing something right on a general basis. We try to operate at the highest level 365 days a year. So to think that we have to create something new would be an injustice to how you go about your business every day.”
Not that Carolina is satisfied with where it as a team right now. Despite a 7-1 record, Kingston and his players have said their best baseball has yet to be played.
“We played well, we’re 7-1, but there’s still more in the tank, and that’s exciting,” senior third baseman Jacob Olson said.
What areas is Kingston unsatisfied with?
“Our infield defense needs to continue to get better. I think we’ve had a few more mental mistakes from the new players than we would like, but that will improve as we continue to expose them to what it takes at this level and continue to teach them about the game. I think our starting pitching has a chance to be really good, but it hasn’t been as good as it can be yet,” he said.
Still, Kingston does like the way his team matches up with a ranked Tigers squad overall. USC and Clemson have identical records and a similar strength in power hitting, he said.
“They have 17 homers, they have 22 stolen bases, so it’s a speed and power team,” Kingston said. “They don’t have any sacrifice bunts, so I think they believe in manufacturing by swinging the bat, which is somewhat similar to us. Their pitching has been very good as well, their starting pitching has been outstanding and they don’t beat themselves.”
Pitching rotation: Kingston said Thursday that South Carolina will stick with its current weekend rotation of sophomore Carmen Mlodzinski on Friday, freshman Dylan Harley on Saturday and junior Reid Morgan on Sunday.
There had been speculation Morgan would move up in the weekend after posting a 1-0 record and 1.29 ERA in 14 innings over two starts, noticeably better than Mlodzinski or Harley. But Kingston pointed to the two younger pitchers’ potential in announcing his decision.
Injuries: Sophomore second baseman Noah Campbell is “100 percent” ready to play this weekend after missing Tuesday’s game against Appalachian State with a minor back injury, Kingston said. Senior catcher/first baseman Chris Cullen will be a game-time decision, also with a back injury, but Kingston said he is “pretty confident” Cullen will play.
