A look at Gamecock alums in MLB: August recap

The Major League Baseball regular season is entering the home stretch with only one month left to play before the postseason begins.

For a few former South Carolina players, their teams are well out of the playoff race, while others are looking to help their teams play into October.

As the calendar flips to September, let’s take a look at how each of the Gamecock alums has been performing so far this season.

Jonah Bride — Minnesota Twins

Bride hasn’t been in the big leagues since the Twins designated him for assignment on June 29. He’s been playing with the Twins’ Triple-A affiliate, the St. Paul Saints, hitting .247 with two home runs and 15 RBI in 29 games. He’s yet to get the call back up to the big leagues, though.

In his time with Minnesota this year, the 29-year-old hit .170/.248/.188 with no home runs and five RBI in 112 at-bats. He opened the year with the Miami Marlins before being traded to Minnesota in April.

Carlos Cortes — Athletics

Since making his MLB debut on July 23, Cortes has stuck around with the Athletics as they sit in last place in the AL West. The 28-year-old has made the most of his opportunity, hitting .300 with five RBI and 18 hits in 60 at-bats through 27 games.

He’s still searching for his first big league homer, but with him seemingly staying in the big leagues the rest of the way, he’ll have a chance to reach that milestone. Cortes has played both corner outfield spots and third base for the A’s this season.

August stats — AB: 35, H: 11, AVG: .314, OBP: .333, SLG: .457, HR: 0, RBI: 4, K: 9, BB: 1

Jordan Montgomery — Milwaukee Brewers

Despite not pitching at all this season, Montgomery found himself being traded for the second time in his career. On Trade Deadline day, the former Gamecock left-hander and reliever Shelby Miller were traded from the Arizona Diamondbacks to the Brewers in exchange for a player to be named later or cash considerations.

Montgomery’s time with the D-Backs comes to an end after only one full season with the club. He’ll miss the entire 2025 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery. It’s the second time in his career that he’s had to undergo elbow surgery.

The 32-year-old had his worst season after going 8-7 with a 6.23 ERA in 21 starts in 2024. He struck out 83 batters and walked 44 as opponents hit .312 against him. Montgomery is set to hit free agency after this season.

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Carmen Mlodzinski — Pittsburgh Pirates

Mlodzinski has looked like a much-improved pitcher since being recalled about two months ago. He had another solid month of outings in August, which has lowered his ERA to 3.86 entering September.

The right-hander is 3-7 on the year with 75 strikeouts and 24 walks in 86 innings, the most he’s thrown as a big leaguer. He’s mostly pitched out of the bullpen for the Pirates this season.

August stats — GS: 2, App: 7, W-L: 1-1, ERA: 2.04, IP: 17.2, SO: 22, BB: 6, ER: 4, HR: 2, OBA: .164

Clarke Schmidt — New York Yankees

Less than two weeks after pitching seven no-hit innings against the Baltimore Orioles, Schmidt’s season came to an abrupt halt after a three-inning start in Toronto on July 3. The next day, he was placed on the injured list with right forearm tightness and later learned he would need to undergo Tommy John surgery.

Schmidt will miss the rest of this season and could miss all of 2026 as well, given the usual 13-15 month recovery timeline for TJ procedures. It’s a tough blow for the 29-year-old in the prime of his career.

Schmidt will finish his season having gone 4-4 with a 3.32 ERA over 14 starts. He struck out 73 batters and walked 30 while holding opponents to a .199 average in 78.2 innings.

Christian Walker — Houston Astros

Walker didn’t hit for as much average as he did in July, when he batted .318 for the month, but he did go on a bit of a power surge in August. After homering in back-to-back games to open the month, he hit homers in three straight games from Aug. 21-23 in a weekend series against the Orioles.

With over 500 at-bats on the year, Walker has been a consistent presence in the Astros’ lineup as Houston looks to return to the postseason for the ninth straight season. The 34-year-old is hitting .235 with 21 homers and 74 RBI in 132 games.

August stats — AB: 102, H: 24, AVG: .235, OBP: .310, SLG: .520, HR: 8, RBI: 19, K: 30, BB: 10

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