Sweep! Roman Kimball debuts, Gamecocks run-rule and no-hit Miami (Ohio) in finale
Roman Kimball let himself smile just for a second.
One second to take in the strikeout. His 77 mph curveball swept into catcher Cole Messina’s glove, one of those pitches so pretty that the batter began walking to the dugout before the umpire said a word.
Kimball’s follow through was so ferocious that he stepped into an odd gallop that led him into the grass. He jaunted around the pitchers mound, glancing at his infield when the moment finally led to a grin.
Twenty months after last pitching in an actual game. Nineteen months after committing to South Carolina. And 16 months after undergoing Tommy John surgery, Kimball was back on the mound during No. 25 South Carolina’s 14-0 victory (7 innings) over Miami (Ohio) on Sunday afternoon to record the opening-series sweep.
“It was just everything I had hoped for,” Kimball said. “Just to be able to go out there and throw the ball again in a competitive setting, you’re just so laser-focused on what you’re doing.”
While Kimball was out, he turned into a storyteller, picking up a camera and vlogging about the game. After he wrapped up his two innings on Sunday, he waltzed around the dugout with a camera. And good thing he did, a great story turned into a fairy tale.
Kimball started what became the first South Carolina no-hitter since Feb. 24 2013 (when three pitchers combined to leave Albany without any hits) and just the second since 1975.
On Sunday, Kimball (two innings), Ty Good (two innings), Tyler Pitzer (one inning), Parker Marlatt (one inning) and Tyler Dean (one inning) did not allow a single hit against Miami (OH).
Said coach Mark Kingston: “You throw a no-hitter, you score 14 runs, you play error-less baseball. It’s hard to ask for more than that.”
“To be a part of that, a no-hitter in my first outing — what are the odds?” Kimball added. “It’s just so surreal. ... I went and hugged my mom after the game and she started crying. She’s like, ‘I’m so proud of you.’”
The day began with Kimball billowing with energy. Perhaps it was nerves. Perhaps it was excitement. But his first live pitch in a year and a half was a 92 mph strike. The first batter he faced since joining South Carolina struck out on four pitches. He struck out the second batter, too, dismaying him with another breaking ball.
“It doesn’t look like he’s coming off Tommy John,” SEC Network+ color commentator Kip Bouknight said on the broadcast. “He is electric.”
Kimball was on a low pitch count for Sunday. He hurled the ball 40 times, getting through just two innings before he was replaced by Good.
It seemed Kimball’s energy caused some control issues — he walked three batters and threw about 50% balls — but otherwise those two innings were masterful. He faced nine batters and struck out five, allowing no hits and no runs. Even better: Only once did a Miami (OH) batter hit a ball into the field of play.
And he notched run support right away. The Gamecocks scored seven runs in the first inning, drawing a half-dozen walks in the opening frame to blow it open. On the afternoon, Parker Noland notched a pair of hits. As did Dylan Brewer, who along with fellow outfielder Blake Jackson, leads USC with 5 RBI.
All offseason, though, the worries centered around South Carolina’s pitching staff. The Gamecocks lost over 60% of their production from last season and their three weekend starters hardly started any games in 2023. The concerns were just. Through one weekend, though, they were not a factor.
South Carolina’s three starting pitchers this weekend — Eli Jones (Fri.), Dylan Eskew (Sat.) and Kimball — pitched a combined 13 innings and allowed just four hits and one earned run. The trio all got into some trouble at points, but escaped relatively unscathed.
One by one, they quelled any worry — and made history in the process.
South Carolina baseball schedule this week
- Tuesday vs. Winthrop, 4 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)
- Wednesday vs. Queens, 4 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)
- Friday vs. Belmont, 4 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)
- Saturday vs. Belmont, 2 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)
- Sunday vs. Belmont, 1:30 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)
This story was originally published February 18, 2024 at 4:19 PM.
