What Erik Bakich said about Cam Cannarella after star's likely last Clemson baseball game
CLEMSON — Cam Cannarella was in the on-deck circle in the ninth inning of the NCAA tournament regional as his walk-up song, "Let Me Clear My Throat" by DJ Kool, blared from the ballpark's speakers.
Tigers fans, coaches and players applauded the star center fielder as he entered the batter's box in what is likely his final game at Clemson. Cannarella is a highly ranked prospect in the 2025 MLB Draft with MLB.com ranking him No. 39, a second-round projection. He entered the season as a projected top-15 selection.
Cannarella earned a ninth-inning walk in Clemson's 16-4 loss to region No. 3 seed Kentucky on June 1 at Doug Kingsmore Stadium. He recorded one hit to extend his hitting streak to 22 games and batted .353 this season to close his junior year. Despite making acrobatic catches and clutch hits throughout his three-year career, he has never played in the College World Series.
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"Very disappointed that Cam Cannarella doesn't get to play in Omaha. That's a guy that comes around once every blue moon," Clemson coach Erik Bakich said. "A special talent like that, you want to see him shine the brightest on the biggest stage, so I hate that for him."
Dominic Listi and Andrew Ciufo both received standing ovations in the ninth inning, too. Listi set the program and ACC record with hit by pitches with 30, and Ciufo returned from a torn ACL last season to become one of Clemson's better hitters.
Clemson will likely have to replace all three to retool its 2026 roster for another run for the College World Series.
"Everybody appreciates when you get guys that come in here and contribute to help Clemson," Bakich said. "We experienced that last year with some of the grad transfers, and we got it this year with some of them as well."
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Derrian Carter covers Clemson athletics for The Greenville News and the USA TODAY Network. Email him at dcarter@gannett.com and follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @DerrianCarter00
This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Clemson baseball: Erik Bakich on Cam Cannarella in likely last game
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