College Sports

Clay Whittemore had a good college basebal career, with a lot of fond memories and no regrets, but he's been prepared for some time to turn over that page in his life and move onto the next chapter.

The major-league baseball draft passed two weeks ago and, to the surprise of many, Whittemore's name wasn't called.

Some players, especially those who grew up with dreams of one day playing in the big leagues — particularly with the credentials Whittemore earned in college — might have been bitter to not have been taken. But the former Jacksonville State outfielder was OK with it, even as one of his closest friends went in the first round and is virtually assured millions.

What those outside Whittemore's closest circle didn't know, however, is he decided even before his senior season began that this was going to be his last year of organized baseball. He was accepted into graduate school, and while many of his peers will be chasing the not-so-sure-thing of a pro baseball career this summer, he will be chasing his MBA at the University of Alabama.

If people think he's crazy for not giving pro ball a chance with the past two seasons he's had, so be it. He's doing what the man in the mirror is convinced is right for him.

"They can think what they want to think," Whittemore said. "I know where my heart is and I've known pretty much throughout the season, but I didn't say a whole lot to the guys.

"I reckon it to this: You hear pros all the time announce their retirement and everybody says play one more year. It's like they (the players) know it's not in their heart anymore (when they make that decision). I think that's where it was with me ... In my heart I knew it was time to move on."

Even though Whittemore decided early, it didn't prevent him from giving the all-out effort the Gamecocks and Ohio Valley Conference opponents came to expect from him during the season. He earned a share of his second consecutive OVC Player of the Year award this spring after an even better season than he had in 2007.

He hit .425 with a school-record 96 hits, 44 runs, eight home runs and 63 RBIs; he was a first-team All-South Region pick and JSU's Male Athlete of the Year. Last year he hit .391 with an OVC-leading 93 hits and 69 RBIs. He set JSU's all-time hits record in only three seasons after transferring from Georgia.

Not one scout came to JSU without asking Gamecocks coach Jim Case about Whittemore. The outfielder let the scouts know he was going in another direction when the final out was made, but that didn't keep them from pursuing him.

They kept sending him inquiries, trying to determine what it would take to get him drafted, but he had made up his mind.

"I basically told them if it's not going to be in the first 10-15 rounds, then I'm not going to go; it would be foolish of them to pick me after that, it's a wasted pick," he said.

Case had no doubt Whittemore, who also went undrafted as a junior, was good enough to play professional baseball and felt "very strongly" he would have been picked had he made himself available. Recalling a player from his days at Mississippi State who made a similar choice, Case called Whittemore's decision a "very mature" one.

"There's always something inside you that you want to keep playing, but you can't do everything," Case said. "He definitely wanted to get involved in graduate school. He's a tremendous student and earned a scholarship through the academic side of that.

"From a baseball standpoint, I would love to see him play in professional baseball, but knowing his thoughts and the things we talked about, it's not surprising he wants to move on with this part of his life."

Acquaintances said they were surprised Whittemore wasn't drafted. Even without being picked, some thought he would at least give it a try for a year, just for the experience.

But that wasn't in his nature, either.

"It'd be really hard for me to do that, knowing my heart wasn't there; it'd almost make it impossible for me," he said. "Some people might try it for a year knowing it's not what they're going to be doing, but I couldn't let myself do that.

"If I'm out there, there's another guy out there somewhere who wants to be there and he's not getting to be because I'm fulfilling some prideful dream. For me to go out there and take somebody's spot, just to say I did it, look what I did for personal accomplishment, I don't think that's right."

So Whittemore's playing career ended at the Ohio Valley Conference tournament. His last at-bat was a fielder's choice with an RBI in the seventh inning of a 6-4 loss to Southeast Missouri; he was on deck when the last out was made.

On draft day, he saw his former Georgia roommate Josh Fields go in the first round, the 20th pick overall. He was happy for his hard-throwing friend, and never looked back on his own decision.

"When your gut's telling you something and you're really sure about it, it's hard to have regrets," Whittemore said. "That's what I go by. I trust my heart. Right now, that's what my heart's telling me to do. That's the way it's been all along."