A Clemson baseball signee received the distinct honor of being named Gatorade National Baseball Player of the Year.
Gatorade announced Tuesday that St. Mary’s Preparatory School (Orchard Lake, MI.) Brock Porter is the 2021-22 Gatorade National Baseball Player of the Year.
Porter won the prestigious award for his accomplishments on and off the field, joining an impressive group of former Gatorade National Baseball Players of the Year who have combined for four MLB MVP awards, 42 All-Star appearances and 27 MLB first-round draft picks.
He was surprised virtually on Tuesday by New York Mets all-star shortstop Francisco Lindor.
“It was a complete shock,” Porter said of receiving the award. “I was pretty shocked and just excited to receive the award and be there for the moment.”
At the time of his selection, the 6-foot-4, 215-pound senior right-handed pitcher had led the Eaglets to a 37-0 record, the June 4 district semifinals of the Division 1 state postseason and a No. 1 national ranking by MaxPreps this season.
He compiled a 6-0 record on the mound through 37 games with a 0.17 ERA and 87 strikeouts against 17 walks in 42 innings. He also posted a WHIP of 0.476 and held opposing batters to a minuscule .024 average. In 29 at-bats this spring entering the postseason, he hit .517 with 17 RBI, four home runs and an OPS of 1.528.
“I’m honestly super shocked and I think this season has been really amazing,” Porter said. “Just me personally, but also my team. I think our team has come together really well and we’re all best friends. “We’ve played amazing…it’s been a miracle. I’m really excited and honored to be on this team and have the teammates I have.”
Ranked as the nation’s No. 12 prospect in the Class of 2022 by Baseball America and No. 7 by Perfect Game, Porter was a 2021 MLB Player Development Pipeline invitee. Michigan’s returning Gatorade Baseball Player of the Year, Porter was also the winning pitcher of the 2019 state title game, he fired a complete-game six-hitter in last year’s semifinals, surrendering one run and fanning 12 to help lead St. Mary’s to Collegiate Baseball News’ No. 1 national ranking in 2021.
Porter has signed his National Letter of Intent to play baseball at Clemson.
“It was the first school I ended up going to when I ended up visiting colleges,” he said. “I fell in love with the campus and the school itself. Talking with the coaches — now that they’re gone — but they were great coaches for me and I got really close with them too. Just even the teammates that I’m going in with, I’ve gotten really close with them. They’re an amazing program and I’m really excited to be a part of them and hopefully win a National Championship with them.”
Porter plans to enroll at Clemson for all intents and purposes, despite the dismissal of Monte Lee, Clemson’s now-former head coach, who Porter committed to back in June of 2019.
With that said, Porter is projected to be an early-round selection in July’s MLB draft.
“I’m gonna have to talk that through with my family and advisors and all that,” Porter said, “but right now, I’m just really excited to go to Clemson and be a part of that journey. That’s all I have to look forward to right now. That and my state championship.”
— Photo and information for this article are courtesy of Gatorade.
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