Hundreds of baseball players’ dreams came true last week during the 2025 MLB Draft. Among those selected were three players with Lexington County ties. 

All three players played college ball at the University of South Carolina and spent part of their amateur career in Lexington County. 

Outfielder Nathan Hall is a Lexington High graduate and spent his college years at Clemson and South Carolina. Pitcher Matthew Becker is from Chapin and has been a contributor for the Gamecocks for the past four years. First baseman Ethan Petry played summer ball with the Lexington County Blowfish and just completed his junior season at USC.

Hall was a three-year varsity player at Lexington under coach Brian Hucks. In his junior season, he was named South Carolina’s 5A Player of the Year.

He began his career at Clemson, spending two seasons with the Tigers. He transferred to South Carolina for his senior season and had an impressive year, leading the team with a .322 batting average. He finished the season with 13 doubles, seven home runs, a team-best 38 RBI, and 14 stolen bases.

Hall had a 48.6 slugging percentage and reached base almost 40% of the time. He held a 17-game hitting streak from March 1-28 and reached base in 20 straight games. He also led the team with 19 multi-hit games and was tied for the lead with nine multi-RBI performances.

The Arizona Diamondbacks took Hall in the fifth round with the 153rd overall pick. He officially signed his contract this week, meaning he will not return to school and officially begin his professional career. 

Becker had a decorated career at Chapin. He helped the team win the 4A state championship during his freshman year in 2018. After that, he became a two-time All-Region selection in 2019 and 2021. He also holds the school record for regular-season strikeouts with 94 during the 2021 season. 

At South Carolina, Becker made 79 mound appearances with 26 starts. He has a record of 14-13 and a 5.77 ERA average. He threw 64 strikeouts in 47.1 innings pitched.

Becker was selected in the 19th round with the 569th pick by the Minnesota Twins. He has not signed his contract as of Monday, but is out of college eligibility. 

Petry spent the 2023 season with the Blowfish and became the franchise’s highest selected player after being taken with the 49th overall pick in the second round by the Washington Nationals. 

He started 44 games for the Gamecocks in 2025. He finished the year with a 0.321 batting average with 10 doubles, a triple, 10 home runs and 34 RBIs. He scored 30 runs, had a .437 on-base percentage and a .590 slugging percentage. 

In his three-year Gamecock career, Petry had 54 home runs, which is second in the school’s all-time record book. He was an All-SEC First Team selection and consensus Freshman All-American in 2023, when he hit 23 home runs and had 75 RBIs.

Petry became the highest-selected Gamecock since Carmen Mlodzinski was picked 31st overall by the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2020.

South Carolina’s Eli Jerzembeck was also selected in the draft. He was taken in the 11th round by the Cubs. 

Two of the team’s incoming freshmen were also drafted and will forgo college to begin their professional careers. Catcher Noah Franklin and right-handed pitcher Luke Roupe will sign with their respective teams, Gamecock head coach Paul Mainieri confirmed. 

The journey to the big leagues will begin now for all of these young men. They will likely have to work their way through the minors as part of the road to the show.