The South Carolina Class 5-A Lower State championship game saw Summerville High School’s baseball team defeat Ashley Ridge High 6-4 this week. However, the team may not be able to compete for a state championship due to a pitch count violation.
Leading the team is MLB Draft prospect P.J. Morlando, but it was their starting pitcher, Thayer Tavormina, who may have broken the league’s pitch count rule. On Wednesday, Tavormina threw two pitches against Ashley Ridge and then threw 83 more pitches in Thursday’s deciding game. This put him in violation of the pitch count rule, which states that if a pitcher throws on consecutive days, they have a maximum of 75 pitches on the second day, regardless of their pitch count on the first day.
The rule is designed to prevent injuries in baseball and protect players from overuse. Despite these measures, pitcher injuries are still a concern even at the highest levels of the game, as pointed out by CBS Sports’ Matt Snyder in a recent column.
An SCHSL official mentioned that they were reviewing the situation and no decision had been reached yet regarding the rule. If Summerville is forced to forfeit, Ashley Ridge will move on to the state championship series.
