The College Baseball Foundation named Florida first baseman and left-handed pitcher Jac Caglianone the 2024 John Olerud two-Way Player of the Year Award winner on Friday.
Caglianone and the Gators wrapped up a deep postseason run on Wednesday with a loss to Texas A&M in the College World Series semifinals. The 6-foot-5-inch, 225-pounder’s slugging was well-documented coming into this season, but he really took a step forward on the mound as the unquestioned ace of one of the last three teams standing in college baseball.
“In a time when the popularity of two-way players has exploded across the highest levels of baseball, Jac Caglianone set himself apart with exceptional play at the plate and on the mound throughout the entire 2024 season,” co-chair of the John Olerud Award Keith Patrick said. “He carried that play deep into the postseason and became the first starting pitcher to homer in a College World Series game since 1997. We offer our highest congratulations to Jac. His record-setting season for the Gators epitomizes what the John Olerud Award is all about.”
Caglianone joins 2012 winner Brian Johnson as the only Gators to take home the award.
Jac Caglianone, the hitter
Caglianone’s dominance at the plate won’t be forgotten anytime soon in the SEC. He ranks in the conference’s all-time top 10 for home runs in a career with 75, and most of the guys ahead of him played three or more seasons.
Before going over some of the crazy stats Caglianone put up in the Orange and Blue, let’s remember that he only played two full seasons with the Gators, starting his true freshman year late after recovering from Tommy John surgery.
Caglianone was one of the nation’s most-feared hitters in 2024, slashing .419/.544/.875 with 104 hits, 35 home runs and 72 runs batted in. He set the program record for homers in back-to-back seasons, finishing with 33 in 2023 and 35 this year.
In addition to being the home run king in Gainesville, Caglianone leaves Florida ranked first all-time in slugging percentage (.760), sixth in runs batted in (189) and total bases (484) and eighth in batting average (.355).
He’s also been hit the sixth-most times of any Gator since they starting recording the stat in 1986 with 30.
It’s surprising to see Caglianone left off the program’s all-time leaderboard for walks, considering Caglianone was given the free pass intentionally 31 times this year. He walked 58 times to just 26 strikeouts, nearly flipping his line from a year ago — 58 strikeouts and 17 walks.
Jac Caglianone, the pitcher
Caglianone is a better hitter than he is a pitcher, but that doesn’t mean the he’s a slouch on the mound. MLB Pipeline still gives him a 50 grade overall as a pitcher, with four usable pitches.
The fastball is what excites people the most. Caglianone has flashed 98-99 mph in game somewhat regularly and can reach back for triple digits. It’s overpowering at the college level, especially from the left side. His best secondary is his changeup, which is what made him a real strikeout threat this season, but his slider is serviceable when under control.
“The Tommy John surgery survivor struggled to find the strike zone in his first collegiate pitching action last year, but a more compact delivery was helping him stay around the zone more, even if his walk rate still remained high,” MLB Pipeline said. “He touches triple digits with his fastball and he introduced a 90-mph cutter that he featured more than his slider this fall to go along with a solid changeup.”
Command remains the biggest question mark for Caglianone and is the reason more teams are going to want him as a hitter than pitcher. Still, there’s little doubt that this is one of the best two-way talents baseball has ever seen. Why not give him a shot to play both sides in the minors?
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