Testimonial Tuesday: Bentley Yeatts

Testimonial Tuesday: Bentley Yeatts

An observer’s analysis of uncommitted 2022 Bentley Yeatts would lead one to believe he has abounding options. This seems to be by design for the Hammond School (Columbia, SC) Sophomore. At 5’10” and 165 pounds, he’s an infielder who can play the outfield; he’s also a lead-off hitter who rarely strikes out and can produce from the 9-hole.

Additionally, his experiences in recruiting so far could also be seen as wide-open. He has somewhat of a draw to play on West Coast; citing family, weather, a few visits that have allowed him direct contact with a few coaches. But that’s not to say a destination in the southeast or even in his own state of South Carolina isn’t out of the question. The reality is that all options are on the table. Yeatts isn’t stuck on a specific conference or even level of prestige – he just wants to play and allow the best fit to be his landing spot.

The pursuit of finding the right university to continue a baseball career after high school is what perhaps brought him to join the Dirtbags two years ago. Knowing the reputation of the organization and with some encouragement from a few peers already playing with the Bags, Yeatts joined and found himself on the 2022 Tap Out team, which is full of highly recruited players.

According to Yeatts, the chemistry on Tap Out squad was unbelievable in 2019. A highlight was the 3rd place finish at the PG National Championship. Bentley recounted how each player truly wanted to see the other players succeed because of their collective goals. 

He attributes the growth of his own options largely on his experiences to play with and against the best, as well as the coaching he has received with the Dirtbags. Yeatts says it’s easy to take it for granted when talking about the experience of being a Dirtbag but the bottomline is summed up with, “They want you to succeed. The Dirtbags are getting us to where we want to be.”

As the skipper for the Tap Out squad, Dirtbags GM Trey Daly gets to the point on how valuable Bentley Yeatts is. Daly remarked, “He’s one of those guys coaches love to have on their team. He can play multiple positions and you never have to worry about the effort he’s going to give you.”

Bentley surely appreciates that type of confidence and the opportunities to be so multi-dimensional. In fact, Yeatts somewhat sees it too when he quipped, “Trey puts me wherever.”

That “wherever” is what gets him into the lineup, where he knows the chances can sometimes be limited when playing with the best. But he likes that. He seems to thrive on making sure he doesn’t take opportunities for granted. According to Yeatts, the key ingredient is “being ready.”

The well spoken 17 year old also impressively breaks down all the advantages he’s realized playing for such an organization as the Dirtbags and where his mindset was in doing so. He used phrases like “knowing my role,” “put the ego aside,” “will not get outworked,” and “move on to the next play,” to show he gets it when it comes to how a player can get the most out of being a part of the whole in order to produce one’s best self.

Daly notices those little things too, saying, “Not only does he give you maximum effort on the diamond, he does the work when no one is watching.”

Having recently moved from Lynchburg,Va. to South Carolina, Yeatts found himself on a Hammond School roster with some pretty prestigious future DI players including fellow Dirtbag, Tucker Toman. The Skyhawks, defending state champs in the Palmetto State, undoubtedly are glad to have Bentley to shore up an already impressive lineup as they go after another crown. Not limited to being just a baseball athlete, Yeatts is also the starting point guard for the Hammond School. 

No matter the sport, team or position, Trey Daly again captured Yeatts’ mentality with “(He’s a) guy that flat out hates to lose.”

All these signs point to a conclusion to be drawn about the multi-talented Yeatts – he’s a baseball player. Don’t box him into being an outfielder, or an infielder or whatever narrowly construed descriptor some expert may want to classify him as. Simply put he plays the game and plays it with a lot of passion to pursue one objective – to help his team win.

And Yeatts seems to be perfectly fine with that sort of analysis.