Bulldogs looking to show growth in ‘25

Published 9:52 am Saturday, February 8, 2025

There was snow on the ground a little over two weeks ago. Now it’s baseball season.

Turns out the Georgia weather whiplash is a pretty good metaphor for GMC Prep’s 2024 campaign on the diamond. The Bulldogs went 12-14 under first-year head coach Kyle Redmond, including a third-place finish in region followed by a first-round exit from the state playoffs.

“We had some ups and downs last year,” Redmond said. “We were a young team, so I kind of expected that. I made some coaching errors due to it being my first year that cost us. Hopefully I can correct those mistakes this year, and with the experience we’ve got coming back the mistakes the players made will be corrected now too.”

The roster has done some growing up. What was a sophomore-heavy starting lineup is now mostly juniors with six in the mix for starting jobs. That group includes the team’s top returning pitchers from a season ago, headlined by lefty Ayden Hamm and Noah Goddard. Both were All-Region honorable mention and Second Team All-County selections in ‘24 when they each struck out better than a batter per inning. A point of emphasis this offseason was to develop more arms behind them, and Redmond thinks that has been done.

“Just looking for them to take the next step,” the head coach said of his stable of arms. “They’ve gotten stronger in the weight room, added a couple of miles per hour on their fastballs, and developed some good off-speed stuff in the offseason. Those guys are going to be the strength of our team.”

Strides have been made defensively as well, as one would expect with a team gaining more experience. Every rep counts, and a number of the Bulldogs are baseball-only guys who choose to play the sport year round. Redmond hopes that makes for more thoughtful and consistent approaches at the plate. Those attributes will definitely be needed after GMC lost its top three hitters to graduation. Each one was an All-Region and First Team All-County honoree with RBI totals in the mid to high teens, so Redmond is looking to the top of his lineup to replace the lost production.

Another difference from last season is that the starting nine won’t be written in pen.

“We’ve got a little more versatility and depth this year,” Redmond said. “Last year we had pretty much the same nine for every game unless somebody got hurt. It was easy to make the lineups. This year we’ve got 12 to 13 vying for those nine jobs. The lineups are going to change based on who’s on the mound.”

The Bulldogs were third in their region last year behind champion Johnson County and runner-up Glascock. In four combined meetings, GMC played them close one time apiece so the gap wasn’t all that wide. Johnson has its two best arms back, but lost some hitting. Glascock is looking to replace two of its top three throwers.

“Both of those teams will be a good challenge,” Redmond said.

There’s a newcomer into the region as well with Augusta-area Georgia School for Innovation and the Classics, or GSIC, coming into the fold. The Patriots are no slouches, having taken Johnson County to three games in the first round of the playoffs last season.

Speaking of three games, that’s how region contests are being done in Region 5-A this year – as three-game series. That puts a higher premium on pitching depth, which ought to be a positive for the Bulldogs.

“I’ve got high hopes for this team,” said Redmond. “I love what I have. I expect us to compete for a region championship.”

GMC Prep’s regular season is set to begin Monday with a crosstown non-region matchup versus the Baldwin Braves, a 12-13 team and first-round playoff exit last year. First pitch in the season opener is set for 5 p.m. Monday on GMC’s Craig Field.