The South Carolina baseball team struggled this year in their first season under new head coach Paul Mainieri, and the parent of a player who is transferring decided to unload on the program in a social media post.
Jeff Kimball, who is the father of South Carolina relief pitcher Roman Kimball, took to social media on Monday to reveal that his son is leaving the Gamecocks. In doing so, Jeff blasted Mainieri and South Carolina’s coaching staff over the 28-29 season.
“I only wish this year was as successful as the previous two but that’s what happens when coaches who don’t know HOW to coach and just yell at and berate players all season are put in charge,” Jeff wrote on Facebook. “While I hope the team eventually turns it around, unfortunately it won’t be soon with those two morons in charge.”
The “morons” referenced by Jeff are likely Mainieri and associate head coach Monte Lee.
— RK (@arekinard) May 21, 2025
In a social media post of his own, Roman confirmed that he has entered the transfer portal but said his father’s comments are in no way a representation of how Roman feels about South Carolina and its coaching staff.
“I would also like to comment on the social media post my father made that has been circulated across a variety of platforms. First off, I am totally embarrassed and humiliated by the comments my father made regarding the program and the coaching staff, and I want to apologize to anyone affected by those comments,” Roman wrote. “I was totally unaware of the post until it was sent to me by someone. I also want to say that I have nothing but respect for the entire coaching staff at South Carolina, and I pride myself in always being respectful to every coach that I play for. The post my father made was not a reflection of my character and my views of the coaching staff and program at South Carolina.”
— Roman Kimball (@rkimball02) May 26, 2025
South Carolina went 6-24 in SEC play, which was the worst mark in school history. Kimball made eight relief appearances and finished with an ERA of 16.50.
Another parent takes a shot at Mainieri
There were obviously plenty of issues in Columbia this season under Mainieri, who previously coached at LSU from 2007-2021 and won a national championship in 2009. A few weeks ago, senior pitcher Matthew Becker’s mother also appeared to take a shot at Mainieri and company while praising Mississippi State head coach Justin Parker, who was previously the pitching coach at South Carolina.
“Amazing what a team can do when they respect their coach and are playing for their survival,” Laurie Becker wrote on X.
Amazing what a team can do when they respect their coach and are playing for their survival. Congrats to Coach Parker – incredible coach that did great things at SC!
— Laurie A Becker (@LaurieBecker3k) May 4, 2025
Mainieri has a proven track record of winning, so it is highly unlikely that South Carolina will fire him after just one season. The 67-year-old has 1,533 wins in his career and took LSU to the College World Series five times. Mainieri also had a successful 12-year run with Notre Dame prior to that that included one trip to the College World Series and eight NCAA Regional appearances.
If South Carolina has another disastrous season in 2026, however, they probably will be forced to make another change.
H/T Bro Bible
