As a freshman in 2023, Florida catcher [autotag]Luke Heyman[/autotag] quickly established himself as the successor to BT Riopelle for the Gators.
His skills behind the plate were unmatched in his high school class, and that translated to SEC ball. Heyman’s bat also played in college as he slashed .314/.366/.555 and belted 12 home runs.
Based on those numbers, D1Baseball ranked Heyman No. 23 among college catchers heading into the 2024 season.
With more consistent playing time, Heyman should be able to beat his power numbers from last year. Twelve home runs could come during non-conference play and 20 seems well in reach. Depending on where he hits in the order, reaching 40 runs batted in could come easily, too.
Despite being a sophomore, Heyman will be draft-eligible come the summer. Second-year players who are 21 or older can enter their names into the draft pool year early.
Florida brought in senior Tanner Garrison from Coastal Carolina and sophomore Brody Donay from Virginia Tech to add some depth behind Heyman, but neither is ranked inside the top 50.
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