South Carolina Gamecocks Preview for First Round of 2024 MLB Draft

A look into who from South Carolina could be a first round pick in the 2024 MLB draft.

May 23, 2024; Hoover, AL, USA; South Carolina Gamecocks catcher Cole Messina (19) celebrates a two RBI single against the LSU Tigers during the SEC Baseball Tournament at Hoover Metropolitan Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vasha Hunt-USA TODAY Sports / Vasha Hunt-USA TODAY Sports

A look into who from South Carolina could be a first round pick in the 2024 MLB draft.

The South Carolina Gamecocks have hit the ground running following the conclusion of their 2024 baseball season. The program elected to hire Paul Mainieri to be the new head coach after a long stint with the LSU Tigers. Now the 2024 MLB draft is set to kick off on Sunday and here is a look into who Gamecock fans could potentially see go in the first round tomorrow.

In the latest MLB.com and ESPN, neither major news outlet had a single Gamecock going in the first round. However, they did have a current South Carolina baseball commit projected to land inside the top 30 picks, which wouldn't exactly be great news for the program considering he is one of their top prospects. PJ Morlando, is an outfield prospect for the 2024 class. MLB.com had him going 38th overall to the Colorado Rockies in the supplemental first round, while ESPN had him going 27th overall to the Philadelphia Phillies. Here is what they wrote:

"I'm hearing mostly power arms and power bats at this pick (Morlando mentioned the most), but the Phillies are subject to what happens to get to this pick, like the other teams in this area. Could another plus-running catcher in Lomavita be ready as J.T. Realmuto's replacement by the time his contract ends? - Kiley McDaniel"

Gamecocks catcher Cole Messina is a name to keep an eye on during the draft as well. He stacked up multiple impressive college seasons and is coming off a year in which he won the Johnny Bench Award.

On the year, Messina led the team with a .326 batting average adding in 64 runs, 73 hits, 71 RBIs, and 21 home runs. He also threw out 13 base runners, with three of those coming in one game in the Raleigh Regional against James Madison on May 31. Over his three-year career, Messina has a .305 batting average, 38 home runs and 137 RBI. It's not often baseball teams can find both a productive offensive player and a top-end defensive player at catcher, but Messina is that rare combination. In 138 games played, Messina committed just 10 errors and had a career .990 fielding percentage.

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