Gamecocks announce starting rotation for opening weekend
South Carolina announced its starting rotation for this weekend’s series against Albany on Monday night, and the three favorites to earn starting jobs did so.
Sophomore Clarke Schmidt will get the ball on Opening Day, freshman Braden Webb will start Saturday and junior Taylor Widener will get his opportunity Sunday.
Schmidt pitched in 18 games last year, making 10 starts. He finished 2-2 with a 4.81 ERA in 58 innings. He is rated as the 40th-best college prospect in the nation for 2017 by D1Baseball.
Webb, an Oklahoma native, was drafted in the 38th round of the MLB Draft by the Cleveland Indians in 2015. He is rated as the No. 4 impact freshman in the SEC by D1Baseball.
Widener pitched mostly as a reliever last season, going 1-5 with a 4.78 ERA and nine saves. He is rated as the No. 198 best college prospect in the nation for 2016 by D1Baseball.
This story was originally published February 15, 2016 at 10:23 PM.