Ethan Petry making push as best freshman in America right now
South Carolina slugger Ethan Petry knew he did his job as soon as he connected with the ball.
With the bases loaded and no outs, Missouri right-hander Ty Wilmsmeyer had no choice. He’d have to pitch to South Carolina’s hottest hitter.
On a 1-1 pitch, Petry flipped his bat into the air as he poked a single into center field to win the game. In a matter of seconds, all of his teammates came pouring out from the dugout to mob him as he helped secure a series sweep for the Gamecocks.
“It felt really good,” Petry said after Saturday’s doubleheader. “It always feels good to sweep — that’s what the main goal was today.”
[Get South Carolina baseball news and analysis via email]
The walk-off hit capped off another phenomenal weekend showing from Petry. He went 7-for-14 (.500) with three homers and six RBIs in three games against Missouri.
“It’s almost like he’s elevated his play in SEC play,” Mark Kingston said. “I don’t know exactly what his stats are in the six games we’ve played. But I think they’re pretty damn good. Great players get even better on bigger stages. He seems to be that guy so far.”
In a lineup filled with veterans, it’s been Petry, a 6-foot-4, 230-pound freshman, leading the charge. His heroics have left some to believe he’s the best freshman in college baseball this season.
And it’s not that far-fetched. In 18 games, Petry has slashed .444/.481/.878 with a dozen home runs and team-leading 37 RBIs. He also leads the Gamecocks with a superb 1.359 OPS.
“It’s incredible. Sometimes it baffles me. You don’t see this every day,” Evan Stone said. “I remember I was talking to one of the coaches, and I asked when the last time we had a freshman come in here and do this. “He was like, ‘I don’t think I’ve ever seen one.’ So just like for everybody out there, just soak it in. He’s a special guy and a special kid. He’s just going to be incredible.”
[Become an NIL supporter of your South Carolina Gamecocks!]
So far, Petry has been up there with the top freshmen from across the country. His three-homer weekend catapulted him into the lead, while Alabama’s Colby Shelton moved back into second with 11.
In other major categories, Petry is second in batting average, slugging and on-base percentage. Georgia’s Charlie Condon, who’s been just as good, leads in all three by a slim margin. However, Petry has Condon beaten in wins after South Carolina swept the Bulldogs in mid-March.
[Subscribe for free to Gamecock Central’s YouTube page!]
As the season wears on and Petry keeps hitting, more teams are going to try and find ways to get him out. But Kingston believes he won’t fall into that trap.
“The good thing about him is he’s very coachable. He takes lessons and he applies them very quickly,” Kingston said. “We’ve talked about how quickly he made the swing adjustment that has kind of spurred this whole season on from right before the season. He’s going to be pretty consistent in my opinion.”
