Who: #3 South Carolina (35-8) vs Winthrop (21-21). The Winthrop Ballpark, Rock Hill, SC.

Time/TV: 6:00 pm steaming on ESPN+. This will be the final game of the season that Gamecock fans likely won't be able to see Carolina play. ESPN+ does not come with a cable or streaming subscription (that I'm aware of) and has to be paid for as an extra. I'm not aware if ESPN + is available for any free trials.

Projected Starting Pitchers: Eli Jones (So. RHP) 4-2, 3.06 ERA, 35.1 IP, 9 BB, 40Ks, .222 BBA. vs. Alex Logusch (R-So. RHP) 1-2, 6.33 ERA, 42.2 IP, 32 BB, 52Ks, .248 BBA.

Logusch is coming off his best start of the season where carried a no-hitter into the seventh inning against Charlotte. The same Charlotte team that dominated the Gamecocks in April. Logusch pitched 6.1 innings allowing only one hit and and one earned run with nine strikeouts in the Eagles 5-2 win over the 49ers. He was appropriately named the Big South Starting Pitcher of the Week.

History: Carolina is 24-7 all-time against Winthrop heading into Wednesday’s game. Winthrop has lost the last nine meetings to South Carolina. Winthrop's last win in the series was on Mar. 17, 2015 in Columbia, a 7-5 margin. The Eagles last win over the Gamecocks, (4-3), in Rock Hill was on Feb. 11, 1996.

Last Meeting: South Carolina hammered Winthrop 19-3 on February 21st of this year. The Gamecocks played home run derby on the Eagles hitting five home runs. Ethan Petry had two two run blasts, Cole Messina hit a grand slam, and Caleb Denny and Braylen Wimmer both added three-run shots. Eli Jones picked up the win in relief.

Weather: Baseball will be played tonight. It will be a little chillier than most midweek games in May but there is no threat of rain and the wind is expected to die down as the evening progresses.

Following the Charlotte win, the Eagles have evened their overall record to 21-21 and have won four straight contests, their longest win streak of the season so far. The Eagles have also won six of the last eight games, including series wins over Presbyterian and UNC Asheville. Winthrop checks in at #113 in the RPI rankings. They are also .500 in the Big South at 9-9. This season has been a significant step in the right direction for Tom Riginos' program after finishing 18-34 in 2022.

Winthrop is seeking their first win over a ranked opponent since March 26. 2014, when the Eagles defeated #16 North Carolina in Chapel Hill, 3-1. The Eagles are also seeking their first win of either a Top 3 ranked team since 2006, when Winthrop beat #1 UNC on the road, 12-8 in 11 innings on May 10. The 1,989-seat Winthrop Ballpark is sold out for the tonight's game.

Winthrop should be a precursor for Kentucky this weekend. Neither the Eagles or Wildcats hit many home runs. Winthrop has only 19 long balls on the season. Their team leader is Brody Hopkins with five. The Eagles have three regulars batting over .300 on a team with a cumulative average of .265. McKinley Evers leads the Eagles regulars in OPS and and average hitting .921/.327/.483. Ty Hooks is batting .315 with only 16 strikeouts in 108 at bats. Hooks oddly had no home runs or stolen bases on the season. Joseph Szvetitz leads the Eagles in stolen bases with nine and his batting .303. Winthrop has a strong closer in Zan Rose. The freshman righty from Tampa has a 3-0 record with a 2.77 ERA to go along with five saves. The Gamecocks didn't see either Rose or starter Logusch in their first meeting.

A quick rundown of the latest information we've heard regarding the mounting injuries.

Gavin Casas- Still some degree of pain but played the entirety of the Auburn series and some good AB's on Sunday. Carolina will need Casas to regain some of his early season power coming down the stretch. His last home run in conference play was on April 1 at Mississippi State.

Noah Hall- Hall is not close to returning from an undisclosed back injury. The hope is still that he will be available in some capacity for the postseason even if he isn't starting. It is a possibility that Hall has thrown his last pitch as a Gamecock as he is almost certain to turn professional after the season. Hall is amongst the fiercest competitors on the team and will likely try to return if possible for a postseason run.

Braylen Wimmer- He is not going to be available this week. The hope is that Wimmer, who is nursing a sore hamstring, will be available for next weekend's series at Arkansas. Michael Braswell should occupy the shortstop position until Wimmer returns.

Talmadge LeCroy- LeCroy could be back this weekend for Kentucky. He will likely be available to pinch hit tonight. The most likely scenario is that LeCroy starts as the DH this weekend in Lexington and doesn't play in the infield. LeCroy pinch hit once over the weekend in the Auburn series. If he is at DH, expect Messina at third. and French catching this weekend with Tippett starting at second. If LeCroy is effective swinging the bat, Caleb Denny and Carson Hornung would be available to play left field.

Will McGillis- Nothing new here. The staff has targeted the series at Arkansas for McGillis' return. The lineup will get very interesting if McGillis, LeCroy, and Wimmer are all back to full speed for Arkansas. It will be tough to keep Braswell out of the lineup as he is currently third on the team in hitting in SEC games at .281.

Mark Kingston - No Coach Kingston isn’t hurt but he is serving a mandatory one game suspension for his ejection from Sunday’s game after (correctly) arguing that the home plate umpire missed a pitch clock violation.