A deep dive on Southern Miss baseball as it prepares for an unusual 2021 season
The 2021 college baseball season will be unlike any in history in terms of experience and talent, and it seems that Southern Miss will be among the programs well suited to compete under the unusual circumstances.
The NCAA granted an extra year of eligibility to players who competed during a 2020 season that was cut short by the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, the roster limit has been lifted for the 2021 season.
Aside from star second baseman Matthew Guidry, who decided to wrap up his career, coach Scott Berry returns the bulk of talent from last year’s team that finished 12-4.
This year’s schedule, which has yet to be released, will also have a different look compared to previous seasons.
While the early weekend non-conference series will be the traditional three games, Conference USA play will consist of four-games series on weekends — one nine-inning game on Friday, two seven-inning contests on Saturday and another nine-inning game on Sunday.
As a result, there will be fewer mid-week games after the start of conference play.
“There are going to be a lot of weeks where we’re going to be open with no mid-week games,” Berry said.
Gifted USM pitching staff
In his 20th season at USM and 11th as head coach, Berry has a squad that has the potential to make a deep run into the postseason.
Nowhere on the team does Southern Miss appear more loaded than the pitching staff, where it has three starting pitchers that have both All-Conference USA and All-American potential in sophomore Gabe Shepard, senior Walker Powell and senior Hunter Stanley.
Shepard is a hard-throwing right-hander that was regarded as a top 100 MLB prospect in 2020, but a sore arm and a shorter draft has him back at USM for at least one more season. If he pitches like he did to end the 2019 season with a 97-mph fastball, he has a shot be among the most dominant pitchers in all of college baseball. His late showings in a no-hitter against Rice and a win over Arizona State in the 2019 Baton Rouge Regional earned national buzz.
After sitting out the fall to rest and rehab, Berry said that Shepard has thrown four bullpen sessions recently.
“I talked with him (last week) and he said he felt great. He says everything feels really, really good,” Berry said.
Powell, a sixth-year senior, is 20-8 with a 3.02 ERA, 189 strikeouts and and 38 walks in 250 1/3 innings over 54 appearances. The 6-foot-8 Arkansas native gets a shot to close out his career on a strong note after going 3-0 with a 1.24 ERA in four starts last season.
Stanley, who closed out games the last two seasons, is expected to make the transition to starting pitcher after he seemed well on his way to contending for national honors out of the bullpen last season. In 12 2/3 innings in 2020, he was 2-0 with a 1.42 ERA, three saves, 22 strikeouts and one walk.
After going 7-2 with a 2.68 ERA in two seasons as a reliever, Berry believes Stanley is in position to make the jump to starter in his final season much like former Golden Eagle Nick Sandlin did on his way to becoming the Perfect Game/Rawlings National Pitcher of the Year in 2018.
Other Southern Miss arms
USM returns freshman right-hander Ben Etheridge, who excelled in the weekend starter role last season, finishing 3-0 with a 2.29 ERA with 26 strikeouts and five walks in 19 innings. He could move back into the bullpen this spring.
Sophomore Drew Boyd, who has been steadily progressing since injuring his left arm during his senior year at Oak Grove High School in 2017, appears on pace to get a look as a left-handed option as a starter in the weekend or mid-week roles.
“He was outstanding this fall for us on the mound,” Berry said. “The biggest thing for him was he hasn’t been healthy, but I was very impressed this fall.”
Freshman Tyler Stuart, an Illinois native who sat out as a redshirt in 2020 following Tommy John surgery, is a 6-foot-9, 235-pound right-hander. He should finally take the mound in his third year at USM.
He was expected to eventually pitch last season, but that didn’t pan out after the season ended early.
“I think Tyler Stuart has been a pleasant surprise,” Berry said. “He had Tommy John surgery, but boy has he come back really strong. His arm works really well. We’ll count on him in relief.”
Moving Stanley to the starting rotation will leave a gap to fill in the bullpen, but senior Tyler Spring, freshman Isaiah Rhodes and sophomore Ryan Och are quality arms that can log significant innings. A pair of first-year freshmen, right-hander Tanner Hall and lefty Justin Storm, should contribute in the pen as well.
“The days of designating one guy as the closer are going by the wayside,” Berry said. “I don’t look at our roster and say, ‘That’s our closer.’ I think we have several guys who have the opportunity close.”
With the starting rotation as deep as it is, Southern Miss should adjust well to four-game series in Conference USA play, but Berry points out that his team won’t be the only one to have a deeper than usual pitching staff.
“You’ve got to think that the depth of everybody’s staff would be better because of unlimited rosters,” Berry said. “Everybody is in the same shape.
“If we can stay healthy, I feel like we’ve got as much depth as we’ve ever had. It makes you feel more comfortable going into four games on a weekend.”
A look at the potential USM lineup
Guidry is the only full-time starter as a position player who is not back from the 2020 squad, but the USM lineup should look a little different with new additions to the roster.
“I think there are some guys that I have penciled in and there’s other positions where if they’re going win them outright, they’re going to have to show they can hit left-handed pitching,” Berry said. “I still have some questions that need to be answered between now and the 19th. It promotes good competition.”
▪ First base — Last year’s starter, sophomore Will McGillis, has made another position change and it appears that junior college transfer Christopher Sargent is on track to be the starter in the season opener.
“He’ll be a big bat in the middle of the lineup and a tough out,” Berry said of Sargent.
▪ Second base — McGillis will play his third position in three years after playing as a freshman at shortstop.
▪ Shortstop — Dustin Dickerson was regarded as a defensive specialist when he signed out of West Jones, and he showed he can compete at the plate with a .291 batting average as a freshman.
▪ Third base — Sophomore Danny Lynch has started the last two seasons, but he could be pushed by sophomore Michael Wein, who transferred in from Pearl River Community College after signing with Wake Forest out of high school.
▪ Catcher — Arkansas transfer Andrew Stanley was USM’s best option a year ago, hitting at a .310 clip. Jones College transfer Blake Johnson, who signed with Tulane out of Gulfport High School, will also push for playing time behind the plate.
▪ Left field — Redshirt junior Gabe Montenegro is back for his fourth consecutive season as a starter in left. He’ll look to improve on last season’s .290 batting average.
▪ Center field — Reed Trimble is in good position to remain the starter after making a nice showing in center last season, hitting .275 with 12 RBIs.
▪ Right field — First-year freshman Slade Wilks, who was considered a solid MLB prospect out of Columbia Academy, will have a shot to take the field early in right. He was rated the No. 2 high school prospect in Mississippi for 2020 and will provide a big bat from the left side.
▪ Utility — Freshman infielder Cade Crosby of Gulfport impressed Berry in the fall and there’s a good chance he’ll see playing time at second or on the left side of the field.
“Right now he’s kind of a utility guy we can utilize at different positions. I don’t think I can settle him in at one position,” Berry said. “He looks like a good college baseball player who has a high motor. He runs well, really loves to play the game. He’s ahead of his age. How he plays the game offensively and defensively, he’s been a pleasant surprise.”
The challenges of COVID-19 at USM
While a stellar pitching staff and a solid lineup should put USM back in the hunt in Conference USA, Berry acknowledges that COVID-19 has a shot to complicate things in a hurry.
Over the summer and fall, USM had 23 of its 39 players test positive for COVID-19. Fourteen players tested positive in one day of testing.
“For 14 days, we had only nine guys that could work out. We had 30 guys out (due to contact tracing),” Berry said.
Berry hopes his team can navigate what could be a tricky spring slate.
“Everything from travel to hotels will be different,” Berry said. “Very few hotels are serving meals there at the hotel. There’s going to be a more involved than what we’re used. It’s going to create a lot of inconvenience, but that’s what we’re dealing with today.”
This story was originally published January 20, 2021 at 4:00 AM.
