![The Gamecocks have a meeting one the mound in Game 2 of the NCAA Super Regional against Florida, Saturday, June 10, 2023, at Condron Family Ballpark in Gainesville, Florida. The Gators beat the Gamecocks 4-0 and are headed to the College World Series in Omaha. [Cyndi Chambers/ Gainesville Sun] 2023](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/shape/cover/sport/ccd97a8a2aa126d015ad9feb1c2a9971af4fb81a89e93272b003429b6636cf95.jpg "The Gamecocks have a meeting one the mound in Game 2 of the NCAA Super Regional against Florida, Saturday, June 10, 2023, at Condron Family Ballpark in Gainesville, Florida. The Gators beat the Gamecocks 4-0 and are headed to the College World Series in Omaha. [Cyndi Chambers/ Gainesville Sun] 2023")
It looks like Chris Lemonis and the Mississippi State baseball team found their new pitching coach in former South Carolina baseball assistant Justin Parker.
Chris Lemonis and the Mississippi State baseball program just picked up a pretty talented assistant coach as Justin Parker is reportedly leaving Columbia, South Carolina for Starkville, Mississippi.
And while this is huge news for the folks in Maroon and White, it sure seems like South Carolina Gamecock fans generally aren’t all that thrilled about this news.
Why would they be? MSU has apparently convinced one of the best pitching coaches in the country to leave their favorite team.
BREAKING: Lemonis brings Justin Parker across SEC to coach Bulldog pitchers https://t.co/LkFp1N0yve
— Steve Robertson (@ScoutSteveR) June 19, 2023
(Which is really good news for us, by the way).
Justin Parker is about as good a hire Mississippi State could make under the circumstances. Chris Lemonis absolutely nailed it.
— Robbie Faulk (@robbiefaulk247) June 19, 2023
Now, Bulldogs need some difference makers on the mound out of the portal.
South Carolina baseball fans react as Mississippi State baseball reportedly hires Justin Parker
This is big news! It’s good news!
Source confirms to me this morning that the #Gamecocks are losing pitching coach Justin Parker to Mississippi State.
— Mike Gillespie (@MikeABCColumbia) June 19, 2023
He’s leaving USC for the same role at MSU.@TheBigSpur247 had it first.
Well, for Mississippi State, that is. South Carolina folks aren’t all that happy at the moment.
Justin Parker helped lead the Yardcocks to a 4.19 overall ERA, good enough for second best in the SEC.
— The Spurs Up Show (@TheSpursUpShow) June 19, 2023
Mississippi State got a damn good one.
And his replacement, Matt Williams from Liberty, has some huge shoes to fill.
And of course, there’s notable disagreement just on this topic. Some seem to be okay with the fact that Parker is leaving Columbia to come to Starkville. Apparently even good coaches have folks who aren’t satisfied with every aspect of their leadership.
How the pitching staff was managed was my biggest gripe of the season. Not sure if that fell on Parker or Kingston but thought not pulling pictures at the right time and questionable bullpen calls were our biggest flaw as a team.
— Bink (@Rbeatty90) June 19, 2023
Parker had good pitchers but he was terrible at game management
— Gamecocks HQ (@GamecocksHQ1) June 19, 2023
Meanwhile, other South Carolina baseball fans aren’t too thrilled about losing their pitching coach to another SEC program.
How could we allow him to leave? Why would we do that
— Alex Kirby (@XanderKirby) June 19, 2023
@RayTannerSC how about thanking Justin Parker? How about thanking the rest of our baseball staff. How about just steeping down as AD! It’s embarrassing how you continue to watch and stand by as our baseball program slides further to the bottom! The baseball program you built.
— Robbie Landreth (@ItsAlways1017) June 19, 2023
Which is fair! Gamecock fans have a right to be disappointed by the fact that they no longer have one of the best pitching coaches in the country.
Now, it should be noted that this move doesn’t necessarily mean that South Carolina baseball is going to fade into nothingness. It also doesn’t necessarily mean that the Mississippi State Bulldogs are absolutely guaranteed to bounce back in the way that MSU baseball fans are hopeful for.
This team has some notable flaws and the Bulldogs have lost some talent to eligibility expiration and than also the transfer portal. And State could certainly benefit from picking up some pitchers in the portal as well.
But what this move does mean is that Mississippi State baseball just stole one of the top pitching coaches in the country away from a fellow SEC school. Chris Lemonis was struggling and he ended up landing a brilliant assistant who can come in and help get this program back on track.
And this also potentially negatively impacts a really, really good SEC team. This is a huge move for Lemonis and his job security. And it’s a huge move for a program that desperately needed some really good news.