Tristan Smith pitched just one inning in his first college start, retiring the only three batters he faced in Clemson’s loss to USC Upstate on Tuesday.

Turns out the reason for that went beyond Erik Bakich simply wanting to give several pitchers a chance to get some work in the midweek.

Clemson (4-4) has stuck with the same weekend rotation through the first two series of the season, but that might be changing. Asked after Tuesday’s game if he had a short leash on Smith out of consideration of potentially moving him into the rotation this weekend against South Carolina, the Tigers’ first-year coach said, “Absolutely.”

Smith, the highest-ranked signee to actually make it to campus from Clemson’s 2023 recruiting class, has made three appearances to this point without allowing a run. The left-hander from Boiling Springs, capable of touching the mid-90s with his fastball, has allowed two hits with four strikeouts and no walks through his first 2 ⅓ innings of work.

Smith needed just eight pitches to get through the first inning Tuesday before Bakich decided to save him for a potential start this weekend. Bakich said the plan all along was to start Smith in the bullpen to see how he handled some high-leverage situations in relief before reassessing his usage.

“Just throw him into the fire that way,” Bakich said. He’s obviously very comfortable starting as most high school recruits are, but he’s gotten a little bit of experience now in these first couple of weeks. Got a start (Tuesday). Just kind of going through the routine of being a starter and what that pregame looks like. He’s definitely in the mix for this weekend.”

If Smith does make the move to the rotation this weekend, it will likely happen either Saturday or Sunday. Ryan Ammons has been a bright spot so far as Clemson’s Friday night starter. The junior lefty has allowed just three runs on six hits while striking out 19 through his first 10 innings of work.

The issue has been consistency on the mound later in the weekend.

Sophomore right-handers Austin Gordon and Jay Dill each have an earned run average over 6 through their first two starts. Gordon was pegged with the loss in Clemson’s loss to Central Florida on Saturday after yielding six earned runs on seven hits in just 4 ⅔ innings. 

On Sunday, Dill failed to make it out of the fourth inning. UCF tagged him for five earned runs on five hits, including a pair of home runs. Dill also uncorked a pair of wild pitches in a 13-6 loss that capped off a sweep for the Knights.

Bakich said after Tuesday’s loss – Clemson’s fourth in a row – that he’s still trying to figure out which pitchers fit best in certain roles. Five relievers combined to allow all of Upstate’s runs on nine hits, including a four-spot put up against Nick Hoffman in the fourth. 

For Smith, the ideal role may be a starting one that could come sooner than expected. 

“He’s a very talented pitcher,” Bakich said. “He’s got a very good fastball, a very good breaking ball and changeup. He’s a strike thrower. Just tremendous poise for a freshman.”