🎉 Seven Luckies confirmed to return to Jaycee Park in 2024 🎉
Tap in to read about each fan favorite and familiar face that has commited
We’re one month into 2024, which means that there are less than four months before the Reidsville Luckies are back at Jaycee Park! To hit you with a wave of good news all at once, there are seven familiar faces for the Luckies returning for their second year on the team.
The complete list includes Gavin Fleming, Jonathan Sendziak, Sam Melton, Cole McLain, Jacob Trivette, TJ Highsmith, and Ryne Rodrigues. Below are fun facts, statistics, and information about each of the seven who will don the green-and-red once again.
Before we get into that, for the third piece of good news, some of our favorites have not committed yet but will likely be back, so we all can look forward to seeing some of last year’s Luckies while also welcoming in some new ones. I will keep you updated on every name for the Luckies over the course of the offseason.
Gavin Fleming
Gavin Fleming’s return is exciting for all fans of highlight-reel worthy infield plays. Fleming’s amazing glovework at shortstop is nothing new, as he won a Golden Glove award with Eastern Guilford in high school. While Fleming is a phenomenal fielder, he is no slouch at the plate, either, with a .253 average.
The Gibsonville native began playing baseball with his twin brother at age four, which contributed to his competitiveness. Fleming, who said that his favorite part of the Luckies was being around the guys due to the good team camradarie, looks to add to his two Lucky of the Game and two Moment of the Game awards in 2024.
Jonathan Sendziak
Jonathan Sendziak, the right-handed pitcher slated to pitch for Louisburg University, had a slow start on the mound for Reidsville. But as the summer went on, he eased into that position and became one of the best pitchers for Lucky City, eventually being recognized as the Old North State League Pitcher of the Week.
If you keep up with high school baseball in Rockingham County, you may have some bad memories of Sendziak. An Eastern Guilford teammate of the aforementioned Fleming, he boasted a 0.7 ERA for the team that went 18-7.
Sam Melton
Sam Melton is an enigma, and we could debate all day what he is best at.
In 27 games and 75 at-bats, he had nineteen hits, a home run, and seven runs batted in. The infielder was also impressive on the mound, where had a 3.375 ERA, top five for the Luckies. Much like Sendziak, he got better as the season went along, seizing two of the last five Lucky of the Game awards and receiving the second-to-last Old North State League Player of the Week honor.
The fan favorite from Clarksville, Georgia, fooled us commentators into believing he was a pitcher, and fooled batters into believing they would get a hit. If you would like to see more of Melton before the summer, head to Gilliland Field, as he’ll be sporting green for the Rockingham Community College Eagles in the spring before sporting green for the Reidsville Luckies in the summer.
Cole McLain
Last year, only one Lucky was returning, and that Lucky was Cole McLain. The longest-tenured Lucky is “Santa” Eric Smith’s favorite player, so I assume he must be a chronic procrasinator. GET THE VIDEO OUT SANTA OR WE WILL CONFISCATE YOUR PEPSI AND PEANUTS.
Back to McLain. McLain, the third baseman who racked up two Moment of the Game wins and a Lucky of the Game award, made some throws you wouldn’t believe if we hadn’t caught them on camera. The Roanoke native is returning to Averett University for his junior year to major in physical education and play third base for the Cougars.
Jacob Trivette
Jacob Trivette, who is heading into his freshman year for Bluefield State University, is a guy who can make a play. Few can forget his Grand Slam against the Sandhills Bogeys, especially those wretched Bogeys fans, which was just one of the reasons he was the only Lucky to make it into the Home Run Derby and the All-Star game.
The .270 batter will be making an impact in 2024. His hitting coach, Nick Black, who coached at Guilford with our very own Chenzo Scanio, is who we have to thank for Trivette wearing a Luckies jersey, and thankfully, we’ll get to see him once again wearing number forty-four. While Trivette is undoubtedly excited to return to Jaycee Park, he is likely just as excited to return to his favorite Reidsville restaurant, El Parral, after games.
TJ Highsmith
TJ Highsmith, the only 2023 Lucky from South Carolina, was a huge part of that three-catcher trifecta the Luckies had last summer. Highsmith has a monstrous exit velocity and led the team in home runs, and while some players put people in seats, Highsmith often got people out of their seats when he was up at the plate. One such example of that is when he walked off the season against the rival Bogeys, with his seventh home run of the season and third since the derby pushing it to a 10-0 mercy rule.
Highsmith comes from a family of athletes, with his father especially influencing him. Right now, he’s attending Southern Wesleyan as a redshirt junior, and will be the cleanup hitter right behind Travis Hammond, which is interesting as they often hit back-to-back for the Luckies in ‘23.
Highsmith has four Lucky of the Game wins, the most on the team by a margin of two, and is tied with Travis Hammond for Moment of the Game wins at three. His effectiveness at and behind the plate will be fun to watch for a second straight year.
Ryne Rodrigues
Ryne Rodrigues, also known as the “Ryne-O,” intends to return to the Luckies in 2024. With a strong bat and power game, Rodrigues was always seen having fun with his teammates, and told Luckies fans in an interview last year that we could expect him to be back. His father, Danny, played at George Mason and High Point, and influenced Ryne’s pursuit of baseball heavily.
Rodrigues hit .257 and went wherever Chenzo Scanio sent him, and his versatility will be valuable in 2024. In the meantime, you can see him competing as a Pfeiffer Falcon once college baseball gets underway.
In addition to that, unless the Los Angeles Dodgers give Joe Dexter a mega-deal, he should also be returning. “Santa” Eric Smith, who came up with and pushed the idea of us doing a postseason discussion literally half a year ago, might not be back if he doesn’t hurry up and publish it. We’ll have Pepsi and peanuts in your memory, Krampus.
So, while the news of Travis Hammond leaving hurts, I saved the best news for last. Leave a comment on which Lucky you are most excited to see returning to Lucky City!
Also, be on the lookout for an upcoming interview with Reidsville Luckies head coach Chenzo Scanio, and if you’re subscribed, it will go straight to your inbox.
The player I am most excited to see back is Cole McLain, as he was the only Lucky last season who had also played in 2022. It will be interesting to talk to him next season about what he has seen change about the Luckies from 2022-2024, and why he has made the very good decision to return twice.
Very well written, Jboy! Thanks for keeping us informed! Cannot wait for the season to begin!