When the Lexington County Blowfish take the field next summer, they will be under new leadership in the dugout with the hiring of Matt Padgett as the team's new head coach..
A former standout at Lexington High School, Padgett signed with Clemson and played under head coach Jack Leggett and assistant coach Tim Corbin. In his final season with the Tigers, Matt recorded 58 RBI with 14 home runs and a .376 batting average. He was named First Team All-ACC in his final season as well.
Matt was selected in the fifth round of the Amatuer Draft by the Florida Marlins in 1998. In 2004, for AAA-Albuquerque, he hit 24 home runs and tallied 93 RBI in what would be his best season in the minor leagues.
During his playing career, Padgett also played winter ball in Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Mexico and Venezuela. A fifth round MLB draft pick by the Marlins in 1998, Padgett played thirteen years of professional baseball.
Padgett was named Ben Lippen's interim head baseball coach in 2018 and led the Falcons to a runner-up finish in the SCISA 3A state championship series. In 2019, he was named full-time head coach and led the Falcons to another runner-up finish in the SCISA state championship series.
He will continue his role at Ben Lippen while leading the Blowfish in the summer.