Transfer lefty Bradley Hodges feels he'll 'fit right in' at South Carolina

When Brian O’Connor left Virginia to become Mississippi State’s head coach, many of his current and future players followed. Then there were others, like Bradley Hodges, who wanted to explore opportunities elsewhere.

With two years of eligibility left, Hodges had already earned his degree in psychology when he decided to leave Virginia. While tough, it made his decision to transfer easier, seeing as O’Connor and some of his coaches and teammates were heading to Starkville.

For his next stop, Hodges wanted to be at a place where he could be developed by a good coaching staff and be a part of a great baseball environment. So when South Carolina showed interest, he knew this was the type of school and program he was looking for.

“South Carolina sounded like a great spot to land, to pursue a master’s and use the two years of eligibility I have left,” Hodges told GamecockCentral. “So with that, paired with the environment and the coaching staff and the culture there, it definitely made me feel like I was gonna fit right in.”

Hodges, who committed on June 10, is looking into getting his master’s degree in international business at South Carolina. As far as baseball is concerned, he’s looking to pick up where he left off at Virginia this season.

After undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2024, the left-hander joined the starting rotation in early March this year. In eight starts, he went 2-1 with a 4.88 ERA in 27.2 innings.

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He didn’t have a drastic workload, only pitching five or more innings twice in his outings. As he built up his pitch count, he started to see good results, striking out 36 batters and walking 17. It culminated in his best start of the year, where he tossed seven innings of one-run ball at Georgia Tech on April 26.

“Everything felt right, like everything felt like it did before I had surgery,” Hodges said. “… I was a little fatigued after that. So I took a bit to recover, considering I haven’t done that in a long time. That’s something that (Virginia) had the belief in me. It’s kind of what they want me to be eventually.”

Hodges’ final two starts didn’t go as well, giving up 12 runs in 5.1 combined innings of work. But what worked the best for him against Georgia Tech was relying on his offspeed pitches — a slider, curveball and changeup — and throwing them for strikes, while also mixing in his fastball, which reached 94 miles per hour.

“It’s really just about making pitches and making pitches in big moments,” Hodges said. “That’s what I ended up doing. It ended up working out. So I think that’s what it came down to.”

Heading into the summer, Hodges’ initial plan was to head up to the Cape Cod League, where he would’ve pitched for the Bourne Braves. However, after roughly throwing 45 innings since the preseason, doctors recommended it would be wiser for him to shut his arm down and play it safe.

“As much as I wanted to keep pitching, my arm feels great, though,” he said. “I’m in a good spot. I’m keeping things light right now and just lifting and focused on getting stronger and staying mobile.”

For now, Hodges will be getting ready for the fall at South Carolina, which he’s very much looking forward to.

“It’s definitely exciting,” Hodges said. “It’s really just about going in and kind of creating a relationship with the guys that you’re with and trying to do what’s best for the team. That’s putting your team out there and giving them the best chance to win. And that’s what I’m looking forward to going and doing.”

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