The biggest question mark heading into the season for College of Charleston’s baseball team was the Cougars’ pitching staff.
The Cougars had lost two-thirds of their trio of weekend starters — Ty Good and Trey Pooser — to SEC programs, and would be without a potential All-American closer in Cole Mathis.
Throw in Daniel Brooks, who missed all of the 2023 season after undergoing Tommy John elbow surgery after starting 10 games as a freshman, and CofC head coach Chad Holbrook wondered if the Cougars would have enough arms to finish the season.
As it turned out, Holbrook had little to worry about.
Not only has CofC’s pitching staff stepped up all season, it has become one of the strengths of the team.
Heading into Tuesday night’s matchup against cross-town rival The Citadel at Patriots Point (6 p.m.), the Cougars have one of the top pitching staffs in the nation.
College of Charleston's team earned run average of 3.76 ranks fifth nationally. Closer Davis Aiken’s 10 saves rank in the top 10 in the country.
“We knew we were going to have some very important spots to fill in our in pitching rotation and in the bullpen,” Holbrook said. “We thought we had some guys that would be able step up for us, but until they go out and perform, you just never know.
“We had a lot of new faces that were going to need to fill some crucial roles and that’s always a scary thing to face going into a season.”
Good and Pooser have been contributors at South Carolina and Kentucky, respectively, two nationally ranked programs. The duo combined to go 14-7 in 2023 with the Cougars, making 30 starts and throwing more than 170 innings.
Mathis, who injured his arm and will not pitch this season, led the Cougars in ERA at 3.45 in 2023 and ate up more than 60 innings out of the bullpen.
“It’s hard to replace guys that have been so productive,” Holbrook said.
Enter Jake Brink, Connor Campbell and Aiden Hunter, who have combined to go 20-5 as weekend starters.
“All three of our weekend starters have been terrific for us,” Holbrook said. “Jake has given us a chance to win every Friday night, he’s kept us in games. Aiden has come out of the bullpen to do a great job on Saturday nights and Connor has pitched some big innings for us on Sundays.”
The one pitcher that has exemplified the staff’s underdog status has been Aiken. Despite not possessing an overpowering fastball, the former Mauldin High School standout has been an almost automatic save coming out of the bullpen.
“Davis has a middle linebacker’s mentality,” Holbrook said. “He goes out there and competes his rear end off. He throws strikes and attacks hitters, that’s his personality. If we play good defense behind him, it’s going to be tough for opponents to score.”
While Aiken might not have an overpowering fastball, the transfer from Florence-Darlington Tech has given up just seven earned runs all season.
“I want the ball in big moments,” said Aiken, who has 10 saves in 24 appearances this season. “I’ve always played with a chip on my shoulder and take pride in the fact that I want it more than the other guy. I put a lot of energy behind the ball, but it might now show up on the radar gun.”
Holbrook deflects most of the credit for CofC’s pitching staff success this season to assistant coach Will Dorton.
“Considering who we lost and what we had coming back, it’s the best coaching job I’ve seen in the 30 years I’ve been in the business,” Holbrook said. “We lost three impact arms and for this staff to do what it’s done is a credit to Will. It’s a true pitching staff and that’s because the pitchers believe in what Will has done. It’s been incredible to watch.”
