Florida baseball’s opening weekend didn’t go the way anyone in Gainesville expected. The Gators lost two of three games to Liberty and now need a midweek win over Stetson to avoid slipping further away from a winning record.
There’s little doubt that Florida spent Monday working on its discipline at the plate. The Gators struck out 31 times in the first series of the season, and runs were hard to come by aside from Sterlin Thompson’s two opening night home runs. The Fabian brothers combined for just two hits in 16 at-bats, and Josh Rivera finished the weekend with just two hits as well.
Left-hander Timmy Manning will be on the mound again after a shaky start on Saturday. In three innings, Manning allowed four earned runs, five hits, two walks and hit a batter. Brandon Sproat, who came in for two innings of relief, ended up taking the loss after allowing a run in the fifth.
Florida’s pitching staff is young. They need experienced position players to provide some support, and that didn’t happen against Liberty. Stetson is a nice chance for Manning and the offense to rebound, but Florida can’t afford any sloppy play if it wants to get back to .500 on Tuesday.