"GAMEFISH" TO MLB - Former Blowfish, Gamecock players selected in draft

Former Blowfish pitchers RJ Petit and Christian Edwards selected on Day 3

THOMAS GRANT JR.
chroniclesports@yahoo.com
Posted 7/13/21

The "GameFish" connection once again provided Major League Baseball a plethera of future talent.

In all, 7 former Lexington County Blowfish players were selected in this year's MLB Draft. A total …

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"GAMEFISH" TO MLB - Former Blowfish, Gamecock players selected in draft

Former Blowfish pitchers RJ Petit and Christian Edwards selected on Day 3

Posted

The "GameFish" connection once again provided Major League Baseball a plethera of future talent.
In all, 7 former Lexington County Blowfish players were selected in this year's MLB Draft. A total of 6 players from the University of South Carolina, 4 of whom played for the Blowfish in 2020, were selected on the 2nd day of the 2021 MLB Draft Monday. 
Pitcher Brett Kerry was picked by the Los Angeles Angels in the 5th round with the 141st selection. A 3-year player for the Gamecocks, he was 5-1 with a 2.15 ERA in 17 appearances and 3 starts for South Carolina last season.
He was a 2nd-team All-America selection by D1 Baseball and a Third Team All-America honoree by the National Collegiate Baseball Writer's Association. Kerry had a complete-game shutout against Kentucky on May 15, striking out 10 while not walking a batter. He was named the SEC Co-Pitcher of the Week after that performance. 
During Kerry's summer with the Blowfish, he was a 2nd team All-Coastal Plain League selection. He and Charleston Southern pitcher RJ Petit, who was selected Tuesday in the 14th round (405th pick overall) by the Detroit Tigers, were also named the 2020 Jonathan Johnson Co-Pitchers of the Year.
Outfielder Brady Allen was picked by the Miami Marlins with the 149th selection. Like Kerry, he was a 3-year player for South Carolina who also made 2nd team All-CPL honors as co-MVP for the Blowfish. He hit .276 with 13 doubles, 13 home runs and 42 RBI in 2021 for the Gamecocks. 
Allen led the team with 12 stolen bases and had a .516 slugging percentage. Allen had a team-best 17 multi-hit games and did not make an error in the outfield in 2021. He finished with 23 career home runs for South Carolina.
Pitcher Andrew Petters was selected in the 10th round (291st selection) by the Angels. A 2-year pitcher for the Gamecocks, he was 4-1 with a 3.62 ERA and 45 strikeouts in 32 1/3 innings this season. 
He held opponents to a .205 batting average with just 8 extra-base hits. 
Also selected in the 10th round (297th pick) was Wes Clarke. A three-year infielder for Carolina, who was a 1st team All-CPL selection, he hit .271 with 23 home runs, 9 doubles and 55 RBI. 
Clarke was named an All-American by 5 different organizations and was an All-SEC 2nd team honoree. He was tied for the NCAA lead with home runs in a season in 2021, was a Dick Howser Trophy semifinalist, the NCBWA Player of the Month in February and a Golden Spikes Award Midseason Watch List member. His 50 walks led the team and was second in the SEC. 
Other selected Gamecocks were pitchers Thomas Farr (5th round - 150th pick) by the Cincinnati Reds, Brannon Jordan (9th round - 267th pick) by the Milwaukee Brewers and Julian Bosnic (16th round - 476th pick) by the San Francisco Giants. South Carolina signees Cooper Kinney were selected in the 1st round (34th overall) by the Tampa Bay Rays and Andrew Baker in the 11th round (325th pick) by the Philadelphia Phillies. The other former Blowfish selected were Virginia Tech pitcher Shane Connelly (10th round/289th pick) and Jacksonville State pitcher Christian Edwards. He was picked in the 11 round and was the 335th overall pick by the Chicago White Sox.

In other local MLB draft news, Dutch Fork 2-sport athlete Will Taylor was selected in the 19th round (554th overall) by the Texas Rangers. Pre-draft speculation had the SC Gatorade Baseball Player and 2020-21 Lexington Chronicle co-athlete of the year going in the 1st round. His father announced Sunday that Taylor would enroll at Clemson, where he's signed for baseball and football.   

Clarke, Allen, Peters, Gamecocks, Blowfish

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