Rumors swirled this winter that South Carolina baseball legend Jackie Bradley, Jr. was retiring from professional baseball. The rumors were strong enough that national writer John Heyman even reported that the outfield was “expected to retire.” The 2010 and 2011 College World Series champion denied the rumors and has been working to get back into Major League Baseball since then.

Though he hasn’t been on an MLB roster this summer, Bradley, Jr. has been playing with the Long Island Ducks of the Atlantic League, and he has been performing extremely well.

With the Ducks, Bradley, Jr. is hitting for an impressive slash line of .389/.464/.726/1.190. He has smacked 12 home runs, 13 doubles, and 2 triples while driving in 33 RBI and scoring 34 runs, and he has played a good center field for Long Island.

On Friday, though, the former Gamecock made history. Beginning on May 9th, Bradley, Jr. began a hitting streak, and on July 19th, that hit streak grew to 26 games with a home run over the right field wall. That marks a new all-time record for the Long Island Ducks (besting the 26-game hit streak from Mel Stocker in 2006), and it is the 8th-longest hit streak in the history of the Atlantic League. He is one away from being tied for the 4th-longest streak ever, and he is nearing the top mark.

Jose Ruiz (2013) and Chris Ashby (2008) are tied at the top of the all-time leaderboard as both players managed 31-game hit streaks in their Atlantic League careers.

The next rung on the ladder for Jackie Bradley, Jr. will be climbable on Saturday as the Long Island Ducks play against the Hagerstown Flying Boxcars. If the hit streak continues, he will have the chance to tie the record next Thursday and surpass it next Friday.

Bradley, Jr. is just under the 10-year threshold in his Major League Baseball career, but perhaps his strong showing in the Atlantic League can help him catch on one more time to get him past that mark.

South Carolina football is starting the most crucial stretch of days on the 2024 recruiting calendar. The Gamecocks have at least 9 recruiting targets making their college decisions public between July 20th and August 3rd, and Shane Beamer and his coaching staff are in a good position to land a few of them.

On Saturday, the first two of these targets made their public commitments as 4-star EDGE Bryce Davis (Greensboro, North Carolina) and 4-star offensive lineman Cortez Smith (Lilburn, Georgia) revealed their pledges.

Davis, who was deciding among a top-4 of the South Carolina Gamecocks, Georgia Bulldogs, Duke Blue Devils, and Clemson Tigers, committed to Dabo Swinney’s program. While Georgia was viewed by many as the favorite for much of Davis’ recruitment, South Carolina, Clemson, and Duke made big pushes in recent weeks, and the Tigers emerged to land the talented defensive lineman.

Smith, though, had a little bit more straightforward recruitment. With finalists of the South Carolina Gamecocks, Georgia Bulldogs, Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, and Miami Hurricanes, Smith has been considered a heavy lean to the in-state Bulldogs for some time. Carolina gave him something to think about, but Saturday’s commitment came through for Georgia, nonetheless.

Coming soon, major South Carolina football targets like Lagonza Hayward (4-star safety), Jared Smith (5-star EDGE), Juan Gaston (4-star offensive lineman), Jaylen Gilchrist (4-star offensive lineman), Kendall Daniels (4-star safety), and Malik Clark (4-star wide receiver) are among the other high school recruits who are considering the Gamecocks and announcing their decisions soon. In each battle, USC is up against at least one perennial power, but reading the recruiting tea leaves, it seems likely that Carolina will earn commitments from at least a couple of these prospects.

The South Carolina football coaching staff have their program ranked 26th (On3) and 28th (247Sports) in the primary team recruiting rankings. Those rankings could rocket upward over the next couple of weeks if things go well for the Gamecocks.

Officials with the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR) are reminding anglers to steer clear of releasing a rare invasive species into the water if they happen to catch the fish.

Northern snakeheads are native to Asia and can stretch up to 3 feet in length, according to the SCDNR. 

Sightings of the predatory fish have also been reported in Georgia, Missouri, California, Hawaii, Maryland and Virginia. 

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Officials noted that this is a top-level predator, and “its introduction poses a substantial threat to native fish populations.”

Ross Self, freshwater fisheries section chief with the S.C. Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR), said in an emailed statement to Fox News Digital, “No documented sightings of northern snakehead fish in South Carolina have been reported since some were found in small numbers in private ponds in Georgia and North Carolina in 2019.”

“The only documented snakehead ever seen in South Carolina was one that was voluntarily turned into SCDNR 15 years ago by a gentleman in Lake City, who had kept it in an aquarium,” said Self.

He said the warning that SCDNR issued in 2019 remains the same: “If anglers catch one, destroy it.”

The SCDNR advises anglers who catch the fish to reel it in, “keep the fish, [then] freeze it or place it on ice and contact the S.C. Department of Natural Resources.”

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When taking pictures of a snakehead, include “closeups of its mouth, fins and tail, and note where it was caught (waterbody, landmarks or GPS coordinates),” the agency also advised.

Snakehead fish are capable of breathing out of the water and can move short distances on land, experts said. 

Northern snakehead fish entered the U.S. when aquarium owners discarded their unwanted exotic captive species into local waterways. The species can spread by swimming underwater and is capable of breathing out of the water to move short distances on land, according to the New York Invasive Species Information. (Kim Hairston/Baltimore Sun/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

“It is believed that the northern snakehead fish entered the United States when aquarium owners discarded their unwanted exotic captive species into local waterways,” the New York Invasive Species Information (IS) reported online.

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“Snakehead fish breeding occurs during the summer months (June to August),” the IS website said.

It said there’s not a full understanding of the snakehead fish’s reproductive cycle.

Regarding the northern snakehead, the SCNR advises anglers to “kill it immediately (remember, it can survive on land) and freeze it, take pictures of the fish, including closeups of its mouth, fins and tail and note where it was caught (waterbody, landmarks or GPS coordinates).” (SCDNR)

Species of snakehead fish were added to the list of injurious wildlife under the Lacey Act in 2002.

The Lacey Act prohibits the transportation, possession or importation of particular fish, according to the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.

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In South Carolina, it’s unlawful to possess, transport or sell live snakehead fish.

Self said that South Carolina’s native fish, a bowfin, looks similar to snakeheads, and anglers have sent SCDNR photos of bowfin from anglers who thought they might have caught a snakehead. 

He said he’s asking anglers not to persecute native bowfin just because they resemble snakeheads.

Northern snakehead sightings have been reported in Georgia, Missouri, California, Hawaii, Maryland and Virginia. Pictured at right is a snakehead fish swimming in Missouri waters. (Kim Hairston/Baltimore Sun/Tribune News Service via Getty Images; Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC)/Katrina Thornton)

In May, for only the fourth time in the state of Missouri, an angler caught a northern snakehead fish, the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) reported.

The MDC advised anglers to not release the fish or throw it along the bank. 

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Instead, anglers should photograph the fish so officials can positively identify the species and take note of the location where it was caught.

Fox News Digital’s Sydney Borchers contributed reporting.