Tag: BT Riopelle

Two Gators announce return to baseball team for 2023

It’s official. Florida is getting both BT Riopelle and Colby Halter back next year. Could we see any more returns?

The 2022 MLB draft is in the books, and while a number of Gators are set to start their pro careers, there were a handful of players that didn’t hear their names called over the three-day event. Two of them, catcher [autotag]BT Riopelle[/autotag] and infielder [autotag]Colby Halter[/autotag], have already indicated their intentions to return to Gainesville for another year.

Halter didn’t wait for the third day of the draft to commence and announced his return on Instagram.

“See you in August Gator nation,” Halter captioned his post. “Unfinished business.”

Halter started off 2022 as one of the hottest bats in the lineup, but he underperformed for most of the year after his 14-game hit streak subsided. He finished the year slashing .240/.338/.380 with eight home runs, 11 doubles, 44 runs, 27 RBI and seven stolen bases.

He’ll look to build on those numbers enough to improve his draft stock and hopefully get him drafted in the first 10 rounds of next year’s draft. He’s batting .305 through 95 at-bats in the Cape Cod League with the Falmouth Commodores, but those numbers don’t always translate to SEC play. Halter should be the frontrunner to hold down second base next year for Florida, but he’ll have plenty of competition to stave off.

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Riopelle, on the other hand, made his intentions to return to Florida known almost immediately after the 2022 season ended, according to Gators Online’s Nick de la Torre. That’s one of the reasons [autotag]Mac Guscette[/autotag] entered the portal. Riopelle picked up an NIL deal with the Gator Collective already and was open about his desire to return, which is likely the reason he went undrafted.

Florida got lucky and saw incoming catcher [autotag]Luke Heyman[/autotag] go undrafted, so he should learn a ton behind Riopelle this year as [autotag]Rene Lastres[/autotag] recovers from Tommy John surgery.

Shortstop [autotag]Joshua Rivera[/autotag] is another name that went undrafted that many in Gator Nation are wondering about. He could return, but he could also sign a free-agent deal for decent money or head to the independent leagues. More information should be available on him in the coming week or so.

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Tracking Florida baseball’s 2022 transfer portal movement

It could be a busy offseason for Florida baseball in the transfer portal. Here are the latest moves being made.

It could be a busy offseason for the Florida Gators in the transfer portal, including additions and subtractions from the 2022 team. A few players have made their intentions to depart known early and the Gators are expected to at least compete for some of the top talent in the portal (yes, Tommy White is still an option but FSU is the favorite).

[autotag]Kevin O’Sullivan[/autotag] tested the waters a year ago by bringing in catcher [autotag]BT Riopelle[/autotag] and that worked out beautifully. Riopelle was an All-SEC First Team selection and is now expected to return, according to Gators Online’s Nick de la Torre. It’s worth pursuing some more talent after a success like that, and Florida will have holes after losing [autotag]Jud Fabian[/autotag] and [autotag]Sterlin Thompson[/autotag] among others to the draft and graduation.

Florida did have 16 new faces join the team last year with all but one being freshmen, so some were bound to transfer out.Ā Gators Wire will keep track of those roster movements as they come in and keep an eye on where they land.

It will be interesting to see just how much Florida utilizes the portal this offseason. The new rules changed the game immediately for football and basketball, but it seems that baseball is just now catching up.

What’s next for Florida baseball: A post-mortem of the 2022 season

Buckle in, Gators Wire’s 2022 Baseball Season Recap is finally here. We dive into all 35 players one by one and go over where they stand after the season.

The Florida Gators’ 2022 baseball season ended Monday with a 5-4 loss in the regional finals of the NCAA Championship Tournament against Oklahoma. The year was filled with ups and downs, but being six outs away from a Super Regional berth isn’t too shabby for a team with 16 new players on the roster.

Pitching was a bit of a disappointment early on, but a few freshmen started to stand out from the bunch. That depth allowed the Gators to make a deeper run than most expected in the playoffs and finish the year 42-24.

Conference play was a bit of a struggle. UF finished the regular season .500 against the SEC, including series losses to Georgia (sweep), LSU, Tennessee (sweep) and Vanderbilt. A 9-3 finish against the weaker members of the conference (Kentucky, Mississippi State, Missouri and South Carolina) allowed Florida to finish with a respectable record, but things didn’t really turn around until Texas A&M beat them via the mercy rule.

After that 10-0 loss, Florida played like the team it needed to be all year. It even got legendary performances from the likes of Carsten Finnvold, a freshman who hadn’t seen game action since April when he got the start against Tennessee in theSEC Tournament.

Then there’s the offense. At times, the veteran group didn’t back up the young pitching staff as it was expected to. Jud Fabian was a disappointment down the stretch, hitting just .185 against the conference and going 1-for-30. To his credit, Fabian struck out 10 times less than he did a year ago in about 40 more plate appearances. Walks were also up considerably, so his eye definitely improved despite the low average.

On the other side of things, Wyatt Langford made a complete transformation over the offseason and became one of the best leadoff guys in baseball. He led the team in most major offensive categories and tied Matt LaPorta’s 2005 school record of 26 homers in a season.

There’s a lot to celebrate about with this team, and a lot to address moving forward. Many of them have played their final games in the Orange in Blue, and others are just starting to tell their story.

What will the team look like next year? There’s only one way to properly answer that question and it’s long-winded. Feel free to jump to the sections that interest you the most as we break down the team position by position.

Florida’s Brandon Sproat unsure about future, ponders MLB draft

Gator Nation would love for Brandon Sproat to return for another run in the Orange and Blue, but is that the best choice for his career?

Sophomore right-hander [autotag]Brandon Sproat[/autotag] left everything on the field this season for the Florida Gators. He capped off his sophomore campaign with a career-high 114 pitches over seven innings against Central Michigan in the opening round of the NCAA regionals.

[autotag]Kevin O’Sullivan[/autotag] opted against bringing in Sproat following the rain delay that allowed Oklahoma to come back and claim the victory three days later. The Sooners sent their ace out there to close it out, and Sproat walked out to the mound and crouched to take in the moment.

Was this his final time wearing the Orange and Blue?

How could it be with the team falling six outs short of making it to the next stage and giving Sproat another chance to win the first game of a best of three?

Well, the MLB is calling and Sproat is draft eligible. After being selected in the seventh round out of Pace High School in 2019, his stock has only risen. He can touch the high-90s and his starting to show just how deep he can go into games. MLB.com recently included him in a list of college draft prospects on the rise, and that article was published before Sproat showed his stuff against CMU.

“One of the most intriguing pitchers in the Draft, Sproat has a big-time armĀ but a limited performance track record. He turned in one of his best outings of the season against South Carolina in Hoover, though. Sproat allowed a run on four hits over 8 1/3 innings, striking out seven against one walk. He had not lasted more than 6 2/3 innings in any previous start and had walked multiple batters in seven of his previous 10 starts.

Ranked No. 112 (roughly a fourth-round projection) on MLB.com’s draft tracker, Sproat can head to the minors and continue to establish that track record. Or, he can return to Florida and settle some unfinished business.

He did just see [autotag]Jud Fabian[/autotag] turn down a second-round contract from the Boston Red Sox a year ago to return for another year. It’s certainly not out of the cards. Sproat quote tweeted a post from Nick de la Torre of Gators Online and claimed that he was unsure of what the future held. He also took the opportunity to thank the Gators faithful for always supporting him.

A farewell makes the most sense, but there’s a lot to support the idea of returning for another season. It all depends on where he’s taken this summer. The projections are sure to change over the next month and a half, and Sproat could continue to move up those rankings. A fourth or fifth round offer is easier to turn down than a second or third round offer.

Whatever happens, Sproat’s contribution to the team won’t be forgotten. Especially when he and [autotag]BT Riopelle[/autotag] called off Sully in the seventh to let him finish the inning against Central Michigan. That’s the kind of intangible you want to see from an MLB prospect, and let’s face it, calling off Sully takes some guts to pull off.

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Florida baseball falls in regional finals to Oklahoma following 5.5-hour delay

Wyatt Langford tied the school record for home runs in a season, but Florida couldn’t pull off the ninth-inning comeback after blowing the lead late in the game.

It wouldn’t be a Gainesville Regional without a rain delay, and Mother Nature made her presence felt in a big way during the final game of the tournament on Monday. Florida and Oklahoma waited out a five-and-a-half-hour weather delay only for the Gators to blow a 2-1 ballgame and fall, 5-4.

Before the break, [autotag]Brandon Neely[/autotag] was on pace to get through seven innings of work without a ton of trouble. Aside from a Kendall Pettis home run in the fifth, the Sooners struggled to figure him out despite knocking Neely out of Saturday’s game in 2 1/3 innings. He allowed just one run through 6 2/3 innings on four hits and no walks while striking out five. At 97 pitches on the night, and nearing 150 pitches on the weekend, Neely’s night was likely done after that batter regardless of the rain.

Designated hitter [autotag]Jac Caglianone[/autotag] got Neely the early lead in the second inning with a solo shot ā€” home run No. 7 on the year for the freshman. Things stayed relatively quiet after that until Pettis’ bomb in the fifth prompted the Gators to get the lead right back in the bottom of the frame. [autotag]Colby Halter[/autotag] reached on an error to start the inning off, and [autotag]BT Riopelle[/autotag] drove him in three batters later.

Then, the rain came and changed everything.

Pettis struck out on the first at-bat back from the delay, but there would be plenty of scoring to come. Halter walked on four pitched to lead off the bottom of the seventh and was eventually driven home on a [autotag]Ty Evans[/autotag] sacrifice fly. Gators lead, 3-1.

That’s when the Sooners put up a four-spot to take total control of the game with only six outs to go. [autotag]Ryan Slater[/autotag], who came in for Neely in relief, gave up four straight hits, including a two-run, game-tying homer from Peyton Graham. Josh Rivera was forced to trade the go-ahead run for out No. 2 of the inning, and Jackson Nicklaus came through with an RBI single to the right side.

[autotag]Fisher Jameson[/autotag] came in to get the final out of the eighth, but Florida’s lead and morale was long gone. [autotag]Jud Fabian[/autotag], in what will likely be his final out as a Gator, flew out to right, Rivera grounded out to second and Guscette line out to deep right-center on a ball that had a chance.

Jameson got the Sooners down quickly in the ninth and Florida came up to the plate with three outs left in the season. Halter struck out looking, but Wyatt Langford sent home run No. 26 out of the ballpark to put things within one run and to tie Matt LaPorta’s single-season home run record at UF. Sterlin Thompson grounded out to first for an unassisted out on a 3-2 count, and up came Riopelle with everything on the line.

The transfer from Coastal Carolina did a lot for Florida in 2022, but he couldn’t extend the season once more and struck out swinging to end the Gators’ season.

Oklahoma advances to its first super regional since 2013, and Florida once again falls short of a trip to Omaha.

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Finnvold hurls full 9 innings to force regional final rematch with Oklahoma

Florida baseball is one win away from a Super Regional berth after Carsten Finnvold led the Gators to victory over Oklahoma.

True freshman [autotag]Carsten Finnvold[/autotag] pitched the game of his life Sunday to give Florida another chance at extending their season on Monday. The lefty came in relief for the Gators during the very first inning, but he’d close out the game for the Orange and Blue, throwing 116 pitches along the way. UF came out on top, 7-2, and will play Oklahoma again on Monday to decide which club heads to the Super Regionals.

[autotag]Timmy Manning[/autotag] got the ball to start the game after proving himself against Texas A&M in the SEC Tournament, but [autotag]Kevin O’Sullivan[/autotag] pulled him before he recorded an out Sunday night. In Sully’s defense, Manning loaded the bases on 11 pitches (hit by pitch, two walks) and losing this game would mean an end to the Gators’ 2022 campaign.

“I knew this had the potential to be our last game,” Finnvold said. “So, I just really wanted to give my team a chance to win and try to keep the score close and strand the runners where they were.

It turned out to be a blessing in disguise as Finnvold came out and worked his way out of the bases-loaded jam by forcing three-straight balls in the air. Pop-ups and flyouts would become a theme in this one for Finnvold, who recorded just one strikeout through six innings of work. That didn’t matter much though as he stayed perfect through the next four innings.

Trouble came in the sixth, but Finnvold had a lead to work with after [autotag]Jud Fabian[/autotag] hit a home run (No. 23) in the fourth and Jac Caglianone drove in [autotag]Sterlin Thompson[/autotag] in the fifth. Oklahoma strung together four-straight hits (three singles, one double) against him but it was all weak contact that scored just two runs. That’s one of the benefits of topping out in the mid-80s, opposing batters have less velocity to turn around.

[autotag]BT Riopelle[/autotag] drove in Thompson to give Florida the lead right back in the top of the seventh, and, surprisingly, Finnvold returned for the final three innings of the ball game. He cruised through those nine outs and even managed to rack up three more strikeouts to bring his total to four on the evening.

“To (Oklahoma’s) credit, they’re a really great ball club,” Finnvold said. “A really great swinging team, a really great pitching team. I just needed to hit my spots and execute pitches in big situations.”

Fabian kicked off a four-run eighth that effectively put the game away with another home run (No. 24 for Jud). [autotag]Josh Rivera[/autotag], [autotag]Colby Halter[/autotag] and [autotag]Wyatt Langford[/autotag] scored thanks to some sloppy defense by the Sooners.

Finnvold closed it out, and thank god he did because [autotag]Kris Armstrong[/autotag] was warming up in the bullpen, according to Nick de la Torre. He hasn’t pitched since his freshman year in 2019 and Florida already blew one five-run lead earlier in the day.

Florida faces one more elimination game on Monday at 1 p.m. with a Super Regional berth on the line.

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Game Preview: Florida baseball faces elimination against Central Michigan

The Gators are now in do-or-die mode. One loss ends the season. One win gets them to the regional finals later on in the day.

After losing to the Oklahoma Sooners, 9-4, on Saturday, the Florida Gators baseball team needs to knock out Central Michigan in a rematch to advance to the regionals finals against the Sooners later on in the day. If Florida beats OU, then a third and final tiebreaker on Monday will be played to determine who advances to the Super Regional matchup. First things first, though, Florida needs to beat CMU again.

The Gators took down the Chippewas ace and bullpen last time around, and CMU is running thin on pitchers going this deep into the tournament. Florida will trust [autotag]Nick Pogue[/autotag] with the ball and has already shown that it has better depth than most thought in its run to the SEC Tournament championship game. That said, Sully used up four relief guys on Saturday and their availability is up in the air.

Offensively, [autotag]Wyatt Langford[/autotag] has struggled in particular, going 0-for-9 with five strikeouts so far in regional play. Florida needs him to be a factor at the top of the order like he’s been all year to make a difference.

On the other hand, moving [autotag]Ty Evans[/autotag] into the four-hole and [autotag]Jud Fabian[/autotag] back to the five seems to have worked. Evans knocked in two runs with a big fly Saturday and has been one of the better freshmen on the team along with [autotag]Jac Caglianone[/autotag], who appeared around the same time.

[autotag]Mac Guscette[/autotag] also hit a solo shot on Saturday, which creates an argument to keep playing him at catcher and letting [autotag]BT Riopelle[/autotag]’s knees rest for at least one game. Having [autotag]Kendrick Calilao[/autotag] off the bench for a clutch pinch-hit is also nice to have in this kind of setting.

Game Preview: Florida faces Oklahoma in regional finals matchup

Florida baseball needs to beat Oklahoma after taking down Central Michigan earlier in the day to force a regional-deciding game on Monday.

Florida barely made it by Central Michigan earlier in the day, and now the Gators must right the wrongs of Saturday and overcome an Oklahoma team that beat them handily in the second round of the regional tournament.

The Sooners brought the offense and overpowered Florida’s young arms to an easy 9-4 victory. Florida has shown the ability to make adjustments in the past ā€” UF was mercy-ruled by Texas A&M in the second round of the SEC Tournament and ended up beating the Aggies in the semifinals ā€” but Oklahoma has the benefit of resting for a full day and being up at least one starting pitcher on the Gators.

Remember, even if Florida wins this game, they have to do it again on Monday to advance to the Super Regionals. It would be UF’s first trip to that round of the national championship tournament since 2018.

It’s a daunting task, but Florida has played some of its best ball backed into a corner and there are plenty of storylines to look for. [autotag]Wyatt Langford[/autotag] is chasing home run No. 26 to tie Matt LaPorta for the single-season record at the school. He hit two in the early game, so breaking the record is a possibility albeit unlikely.

[autotag]Jud Fabian[/autotag] could be playing his final game with the Gators and is still looking to prove that turning down the Red Sox’s second-round offer was the right decision. Coming up big in playoff time is a good way to remind people of how valuable you are, even after a big slump.

Then there are the others who are likely moving on from the program after this season. [autotag]BT Riopelle[/autotag], phenomenal as he’s been, is MLB bound after transferring to Florida for a season, and [autotag]Sterlin Thompson[/autotag] is a projected first or second-round pick. Of course, the freshmen are trying to prove themselves just as much in their first taste of big stakes college ball.

Florida baseball opens up regionals with win over Central Michigan

Brandon Sproat is pretty good at this pitching thing, folks. Florida’s ace led the way to a regional win Friday night against Central Michigan.

Florida took down Central Michigan, 7-3, in the first game of the Gators’ regional run Friday night.

The Chippewas threw their hard-throwing ace Andrew Taylor, but [autotag]Brandon Sproat[/autotag] won the pitching duel and went seven strong innings for the Gators. Home runs, as they so often as have this season, put the Gators out in front and the bullpen held on to the lead to advance to the winners’ bracket.

The Chippewas threatened early with a pair of singles to lead off the game. Sproat needed 21 pitches to get out of the inning, but he stranded the runners in scoring position. [autotag]Kevin O’Sullivan[/autotag] tried to get out to an early lead with some small ball in the bottom half of the frame, but [autotag]Jud Fabian[/autotag] struck out swinging to leave [autotag]Sterlin Thompson[/autotag] on second.

CMU stranded two more runners in the second and struggled to pull out in front. Taylor struck out the side despite hitting [autotag]Josh Rivera[/autotag], giving his squad another chance to strike first blood.

Shortstop Justin Simpson led off the third with a base hit to right-center, and things got worse from there. Jakob Marsee grounded out to the right side to move Simpson over to second, and Danny Wuestenfeld and Aidan Shepardson delivered hits No. 5 and 6 on the evening to break the tie. Chippewas up, 1-0.

Thompson responded immediately though, with a home run to left field in the bottom of the third. Taylor struck out [autotag]Wyatt Langford[/autotag], [autotag]BT Riopelle[/autotag] and Fabian (again) to get out of the inning. The strike zone was questionable all night, but both teams suffered equally for the most part.

Both pitchers settled in for the fourth, but Taylor slipped again and gave up a homer to [autotag]ColbyĀ  Halter[/autotag], who hit the ball in almost the same spot as Thompson did earlier. Sproat secured his fifth-straight quality start by working through a pair of base runners in the fifth and setting down the Chippewas in order in the sixth. Central Michigan ran into the final out of the fifth to help Sproat get out of what should have been a two-out jam with men on the corners, and gave him extra life to come back out for the seventh.

Things got easier for Florida once Taylor came out of the game. Garrett Navarra, a two-way player-struggled right out of the gate. [autotag]Jac Caglianone[/autotag] added an insurance run off him in the bottom of the sixth on a one-out double to score Fabian and make it 3-1. That was enough to send Sproat into Justin Verlander 2012 mode, and he came out pumping 98 and 99-mph fastballs with 96 pitches already under his belt in the seventh.

After losing Simpson to a walk on a full count, Sproat called off Sully and demanded a chance to finish the inning. He’d get it done in two more pitches with a line out to left. Sproat’s final line: 7.0 IP, 9 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 6 K, 114 total pitches.

For a guy that was struggling to settle into the No. 2 spot when [autotag]Hunter Barco[/autotag] went down, Sproat has been every bit of the ace Florida needed. Battling through a rough start and holding CMU to one run through seven innings is almost a metaphoric start for his season. Florida needed an ace to beat Taylor, and Sproat answered the call.

[autotag]Ryan Slater[/autotag] pitched the final two innings for UF, and it was a roller coaster of a finish. A leadoff single in the eighth proved to be harmless, but things got scary after Slater loaded the bases on two hit batters. He induced the second swinging strikeout of the inning, and Florida sat three outs away from a date with the Oklahoma Sooners.

Caglianone drove in two more runs with a single in the bottom of the eight to make it 5-1, and Navarra’s night came to a close. Ryan Insco came in to face two batters and then handed the ball to Jake Jones who gave up a two-run double to Halter. Langford struck out for the third time to cap off an uncharacteristic 0-5 night, but the 7-1 lead was more than enough for Slater to close things out.

CMU score two more runs in the ninth, but Slater didn’t need any relief and Florida saved another arm for tomorrow’s matchup against Oklahoma at 7 p.m. EDT. Central Michigan plays an elimination game against Liberty early on in the day. The winner of that game will play another elimination game against the loser of Florida-Oklahoma.

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Game Preview: Florida baseball opens regional play against Central Michigan

This could be a great pitching duel if Sproat and Taylor are both on their game.

After a surprising run to the championship game of the SEC Tournament, the Florida baseball team is ready to start regional play, and first up are the Central Michigan Chippewas. Liberty and Oklahoma will square off in the early game, and the Gators get the nightcap on Day 1 of the Gainesville Regional at 6:30 p.m. EDT.

Both teams will be throwing their respective aces. [autotag]Brandon Sproat[/autotag] has, of course, stepped into the role for the Gators over the last month or so since [autotag]Hunter Barco[/autotag]’s injury. He’s performed well, but he’ll have to outduel another legitimate ace in Central Michigan’s Andrew Taylor. His fastball touched the upper 90s and he can rack up strikeouts in a hurry.

Florida should be going with its new and improved lineup that features [autotag]Jac Caglianone[/autotag] in the designated hitter spot and [autotag]Ty Evans[/autotag] in right field or off the bench depending on the matchup. [autotag]BT Riopelle[/autotag] has also moved into the three-hole in the lineup and pushed [autotag]Jud Fabian[/autotag] down to fifth. Both have excelled in their new spots.

Riopelle also played first base toward the end of the SEC Tournament which gave his knees rest but also allowed [autotag]Mac Guscette[/autotag] to come in and hit the ball as well as he ever has. [autotag]Kendrick Calilao[/autotag] was utilized as a pinch hitter for a struggling [autotag]Colby Halter[/autotag] late in a game too, so he’s not totally out of the mix if Florida decides to go with that lineup at any point.

Hitting-wise, Caglianone and [autotag]Wyatt Langford[/autotag] have been stellar. Since moving into the leadoff spot, Langford is slashing .420/.547/.877 and leading the team in almost every major offensive statistic. He’s now on the hunt to break the single-season record of 26 set by Matt LaPorta (who was also a sophomore at the time) in 2005.

It won’t be easy, but Florida has set itself up to compete in this regional and advance to supers. Starting things off with a win is crucial, though.