It’s never easy for a freshman pitcher to come into an ACC baseball program and find success. It’s even harder for a freshman pitcher to come in and find success as a weekend starter, but that’s exactly what Reid Johnston did for NC State last year.
Johnston, now a sophomore, put together an incredible freshman campaign in 2018, earning multiple Freshman All-American honors after compiling a 7-1 record with a 3.06 ERA in 64.2 innings pitched. Johnston commanded games throughout the season, moving from the bullpen to the starting rotation in the second half of the year.
The success came early and somewhat unexpectedly for the right-handed pitcher from Enfield, North Carolina, who came to the Wolfpack as both an infielder and pitcher. After quickly shifting to a pitcher only in his first fall, Johnston broke out in a big way on the bump in a season even he didn’t see coming. Now, he enters his sophomore year set up to be the Pack’s ace.
“I didn’t really know what I was going to go up against,” Johnston said. “I got a lot of experience last year that’s going to help me out this year, which is really what I didn’t have last year, was experience. I think I’m ready for this year.”
Johnston started out in the bullpen for the Wolfpack as a freshman, and was one of the Pack’s most reliable arms in relief. He made 11 relief appearances on the season, allowing runs in just five of those outings and never giving up more than three earned runs in a game.
He was also as reliable as anyone on the team when it came to his command out of the pen, walking just four batters in 22 innings of relief work compared to 17 strikeouts. His strongest relief outing came in the Pack’s best series, a sweep on the road at No. 2 Clemson.
In game two of the series, Johnston earned a save after tossing three scoreless innings to close out the game, walking no one and striking out three batters. Johnston really found his own with the Wolfpack as the season moved along, and also found a groove with battery mate Patrick Bailey, another player looking to build on a great 2018 freshman year.
“He brings a guy that is going to get on the mound and throw strikes,” Bailey said. “He’s going to attack with his fastball, and he’s always going to let the defense work and get some quick innings and get back into the dugout.”
That relationship and comfort level between Johnston and Bailey helped Johnston immensely last season, and is something that will help the righty continue to grow and develop moving forward.
“It’s a comfort thing. I threw to him last year basically every time I threw,” Johnston said. “He knows how to work with me, and we know how to work together. He knows how to work with everybody else. It’s just a comfort thing, mostly.”
That comfort and success for Johnston last season out of the bullpen turned the heads of the NC State coaching staff and earned him the opportunity to move into the weekend rotation later in the season. Johnston’s last eight appearances of the season came as a starter, with five of those coming in ACC play and two coming in postseason play.
The move to the rotation was something that made a lot of sense for Johnston, who showed the coaching staff he clearly knew how to get guys out at a college level. And while the move made sense and bolstered the starting rotation, it was something that didn’t come easy for head coach Elliott Avent, who didn’t want to lose one of his most reliable relievers.
“Reid actually was a guy that keyed our season last year,” Avent said. “We were going along, and he was a guy out of the bullpen that I was utilizing a lot. He was very successful, and the coaching staff said ‘Hey, I think we need to put him in the rotation.’ I hesitated to put him in the rotation because he was so valuable out of the bullpen, but not only did we put him into the rotation, we put him into the Friday night role.”
Johnston got thrown into that Friday role and the success didn’t stop. In his first weekend start of the season and just fourth start overall, Johnston shut down an incredibly talented Duke offense on the road.
Johnston tossed 6.2 innings against the Blue Devils, holding a Duke offense that had four players who would later see the MLB draft to just two earned runs and four hits. He struck out three in the game, and his command was on display as always as he didn’t register a walk.
He ended up starting five ACC games down the stretch of the season and into the ACC Tournament. Johnston went 2-0 in those five games, striking out 18 batters compared to walking just eight.
“That’s actually what turned our season around a little bit,” Avent said. “He pitched so well on Friday nights as a freshman in the ACC. It shows how he believes in himself, how competitive he is and how much he wants to be successful.”
That competitive drive is pushing Johnston forward as he enters his second season in a pitching staff that is arguably more talented than last year. Johnston will take over the ace role from the graduated Brian Brown, and he knows what to expect in the ACC. However, Johnston won’t let that familiarity keep him from competing.
“It’s easier because the comfort level is there, you kind of know what to expect,” Johnston said. “You’ve still got to go out there and work hard every day, and do what you did last year and keep getting better. We have a good pitching staff this year, and everybody is looking to take somebody else’s spot. We have seven or eight guys that could easily be pitching on any night of the weekend. Everybody wants that spot. We just keep working hard.”
