Mark Kingston shares elements of Dylan Brewer's game he loves

As South Carolina wraps up its regular season with a weekend series against Tennessee, the Gamecocks are hoping Dylan Brewer‘s game remains hot heading into the postseason.

The former Clemson transfer has had hits in eight of his last 10 games, with a pair of home runs in that span.

“He’s trending in a very good direction,” coach Mark Kingston said. “He’s got three homers in the last 12 games, I think it is, which is about as good as anybody we have right now. He brings a speed element to the game. He produced a run last night with a couple steals and a wild pitch. And he brings elite defense on the infield.”

Playing mostly in left field and moving around a little bit when the Gamecocks tinker with the lineup, Brewer has been a weapon on the base paths.

Dylan Brewer’s game is speed and he has racked up 10 steals on 11 attempts this season, second on the team behind Braylen Wimmer.

“He’s a guy that helps you win because he has great range in the middle of the field, which is extremely important,” Kingston said. “You’ve got to have great range in the middle of the field defensively. He can steal a base for you. On a power team you need some guys that can steal bases, and him, Wimmer and Brewer, can all steal a base.”

The other thing that has made Brewer a more productive part of the lineup lately is a shift in his approach at the plate. Brewer is focusing more on one thing, rather than splitting his attention between multiple stances.

It has helped improve his consistency.

“You’ve noticed he’s given up left-handed hitting for now as a switch-hitter and hitting just right-handed, and he’s taken to that pretty well,” Kingston said. “His production has gone up significantly once he’s done that.”

South Carolina is a surefire postseason team, sporting a 37-15 overall record and a 15-11 mark in conference play. The Gamecocks might even have a shot at earning a top-eight national seed with a strong close to the regular season and the SEC Tournament.

Dylan Brewer’s game getting better has been a big part of that.

“He brings a lot to the table and I think he’s trending in a good direction,” Kingston said.

South Carolina returns to action on Friday night with a game against Tennessee that begins at 7 p.m. ET. The second game of the series will start at 2 p.m. ET on Saturday, with the series finale to follow about an hour after the conclusion of the second game.