Former Gamecock QB Brandon McIlwain signs with Major League club
Way back in 2015, Brandon McIlwain turned down a chance to start his professional baseball career. The decorated prep player was considered a potentially high draft pick, but he signed early with South Carolina for football, effectively putting his baseball career on hold.
On Monday, four and a half years and one transfer later, he announced he’s starting his professional career on the diamond and signing with the New York Mets organization.
McIlwain had a star-crossed career to say the least. A backup as a freshman baseball player, he broke into the football team’s starting lineup as a quarterback for a short period before being surpassed by Jake Bentley.
What followed was a transfer to Cal, another attempt to play both sports, moving away from quarterback and finally focusing only on baseball. He hit .200 with one home run in 16 games as a redshirt junior this spring, before the coronavirus pandemic ended the season early.
McIlwain had been a 26th-round draft pick in 2019.
He came to South Carolina as an Elite 11 passer, a four-star player upon whom a great deal of hope was placed. He stuck with the program through the Spurrier-to-Muschamp transition, but ultimately left after just more than a year on campus.
The Mets’ Class A affiliate is the Columbia Fireflies.
