Tag: Sterlin Thompson

2023 Baseball Season Preview: Outfielders

Wyatt Langford is not just the guy to watch on the Gators this season, he’s one of the best college baseball has to offer. But what about the rest of Florida’s outfield?

Florida’s outfield returns two starters after losing [autotag]Jud Fabian[/autotag] and [autotag]Sterlin Thompson[/autotag] to the MLB draft, but one of them is [autotag]Wyatt Langford[/autotag], who should be a top-five pick in this year’s draft.

Langford rose to stardom a year ago after hitting 36 home runs and tying the school’s season record. He hit leadoff and in the middle of Florida’s lineup throughout the season, finishing the season as one of the best in college baseball. This year, he’ll be the guy the rest of the SEC is planning for, so there won’t be any doubt about him when the draft rolls around.

Alongside Langford are presumed starters [autotag]Michael Robertson[/autotag] and [autotag]Ty Evans[/autotag] in center field and right field, respectively. Robertson sat out all of last year with an injury, but he should bring elite speed to the team in 2023. Evans took over in right field at the end of last year once Thompson moved to second base, so he should start the season off there again.

2023 Baseball Season Preview: Second Basemen

Florida’s top options at second might be a transfer and a true freshman, but it’s still one of the team’s deeper positions heading into the 2023 season.

Florida didn’t lose its second baseman from 2022, but he did move to a different position, freeing up a spot for some new faces to compete over.

Last year, [autotag]Colby Halter[/autotag] held things down at second for most of the year but shifted to third base when [autotag]Deric Fabian[/autotag] was benched. Right fielder [autotag]Sterlin Thompson[/autotag] moved into the infield and held down second for the remainder of the year.

Over the offseason, Kevin O’Sullivan added infielder [autotag]Dale Thomas[/autotag] through the transfer portal and got true freshman [autotag]Cade Kurland[/autotag] a year early after reclassification. Both have looked sharp since joining the team, but there’s also Fabian to consider.

Much like first base, Florida might be figuring out who its starting second baseman is on a day-by-day basis. O’Sullivan has a lot of talent to manage, and the best answer might be to keep shuffling the players until something sticks.

Here’s a look at Florida’s options at second base.

MLB Pipeline projects Florida OF as No. 1 pick of 2023 MLB draft

After a breakout year in 2022, all eyes are on Florida outfielder Wyatt Langford as one of the top draft prospects in college baseball.

The 2023 college baseball season hasn’t even started and Florida outfielder [autotag]Wyatt Langford[/autotag] is already earning No. 1 overall predictions from MLB.com draft expert Jonathan Mayo.

Langford landed at No. 3 on MLB.com’s prospect rankings, but Mayo thinks that he’s the guy to go with ahead of LSU outfielder Dylan Crews and Tennessee right-hander Chase Dollander. With an entire season to play, scouts will get to compare Crews and Langford against the same level of competition. Mayo believes that Langford’s defense will play a role in making him the top pick.

“I think Langford is going to show people he can play center field — he hasn’t played it before — he runs a bit better than Crews, I think he’s a little more athletic …” said Mayo. “I don’t think there’s that much separating the two and I think there will be some spirited conversations, but I’m going to listen to the two different scouts that I spoke to when we were putting together our list and take Langford.”

The move to center field has gone fine, according to fall reports, so Langford could prove that he’s a legitimate five-tool player this year. Everyone knows he can hit for power after a 26-home-run season in 2022, and he’s patient enough to hit for a good average (.355) and on-base percentage (.447).

The big change this year for Langford is that he’ll be the guy every pitcher is planning for. There’s no more [autotag]Jud Fabian[/autotag] or [autotag]Sterlin Thompson[/autotag] to clutter the scouting report, although [autotag]BT Riopelle[/autotag] is back for another year and warrants consideration. Still, Langford is the focal point of the lineup and will have every chance to prove himself in 2023.

He doesn’t need to break the school’s single-season home run record to get to the No. 1 spot, but Langford can’t falter in what needs to be a bounce-back year for the Gators. He needs to lead the charge behind a weekend rotation that features two of the top arms in the draft, [autotag]Brandon Sproat[/autotag] and [autotag]Hurston Waldrep[/autotag].

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2022 MLB Draft: Tracking every UF player/signee selected

Follow along for complete and total coverage of the 2022 MLB draft as it pertains to Florida Gators.

The 2022 MLB draft kicked off Sunday night and 80 of the finest prep and college players in the country heard their names called.

Day 2 kicked off on Monday, July 18, at 2 p.m. with coverage of Rounds 3-10, and then Day 3 begins Tuesday at the same time for the final 10 rounds. Gators Wire will be tracking every Florida player drafted, including those who have only signed a letter of intent and have yet to play a game at Condron Family Ballpark.

Four Gators heard their names called on Sunday: incoming first baseman [autotag]Xavier Isaac[/autotag], outfielder [autotag]Sterlin Thompson[/autotag], left-handed pitcher [autotag]Hunter Barco[/autotag] and outfielder [autotag]Jud Fabian[/autotag]. All are expected to sign deals with the clubs that drafted them, but that might not be the case for those selected on Day 2 or 3.

Entering Day 2, [autotag]Kevin O’Sullivan[/autotag] has produced 97 draft picks under his tutelage in Gainesville. He should hit 100 by the end of the draft.

Check back here throughout the draft to stay up to date with all of the moves that concern the orange and blue.

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. 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.

Game Preview: Florida faces off in regional rubber match against Oklahoma

These Gators sure have a flair for the dramatic, huh? Florida baseball faces off with Oklahoma for the third time in three days to determine which club heads to the Super Regionals.

Florida took care of both Central Michigan and Oklahoma on Sunday to force a third and final game with the Sooners on Monday to decide which team continues their season in the Super Regional round of the NCAA Baseball Championship Tournament.

The Gators won’t have [autotag]Carsten Finnvold[/autotag] on the mound Monday to go nine innings against OU, but the freshman’s clutch outing has the momentum firmly on UF’s side. At a certain point on Sunday, the Sooners looked perplexed as they continued to pop up Finnvold’s high 70s to low 80s stuff without changing their swings. That kind of funk carries over in a tournament like this, especially as pitching depth gets stretched further and further.

After using both [autotag]Timmy Manning[/autotag] and Finnvold on Sunday, Florida is essentially out of starters with decent experience. [autotag]Anthony Ursitti[/autotag] gave up six earned runs the last time he was on the mound against Alabama, and [autotag]Garrett Milchin[/autotag] hasn’t made a start since [autotag]Nick Pogue[/autotag] took over the No. 3 spot. It might fall on one of them Monday, but the bullpen is sure to work most of the ballgame barring another miraculous pitching performance.

The good news is Florida’s best hitters are hitting. [autotag]Jud Fabian[/autotag] went yard twice in the late game Sunday, and [autotag]Wyatt Langford [/autotag]hit a pair of long balls in the early matchup. That puts Fabian at 24 homers for the year and Langford at 25, which is good enough for the Nos. 2 and 3 spots in the school’s single-season record book.

[autotag]Sterlin Thompson[/autotag] has been on another planet since regionals started, hitting 8-for-14 so far through the four games. It also comes right after a 4-for-25 slump in the conference tournament, so [autotag]Kevin O’Sullivan[/autotag] is really enjoying having his bat back.

First pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m. EDT at Condron Family Ballpark on Monday.

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 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 — 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 — 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.

Game Preview: Florida baseball looking to down Oklahoma, advance to regional championship game

The last time Brandon Neely was on the mound for the Gators, Florida was mercy ruled. Here’s hoping things go differently this time around against Oklahoma.

Florida made it past Central Michigan on Friday thanks to a dominant outing from [autotag]Brandon Sproat[/autotag] on the mound to outduel the Chippewas’ ace, Andrew Taylor. The Gators won that game 7-3 and earned the right to face Oklahoma on the winners’ side of the bracket for a shot at the regional final.

If Florida takes this game against OU, the Gators will face the winner of Oklahoma and whoever wins the Saturday matinee between Liberty and Central Michigan. If UF loses, the team will play in that early game for a chance to rematch with Oklahoma.

With Sproat used up, [autotag]Kevin O’Sullivan[/autotag] will turn to freshman [autotag]Brandon Neely[/autotag] on the bump. Neely has stepped into the role nicely since joining the rotation against Arkansas and moving into the No. 2 spot once [autotag]Hunter Barco[/autotag] went down. Barco, since we’re talking about him, could be seen on the bench encouraging Sproat with a full arm brace. It appears the Tommy John surgery was a success.

Back to Neely, though. He seemed to hit his stride in the final game of the regular season against South Carolina, striking out 10 and hurling seven scoreless innings. Facing Texas A&M in the SEC Tournament, the first time around, was a different story, though. Neely left after 4 1/3 innings and three earned runs. The Gators would get mercy rules and have flipped a switch since.

If Neely has another short outing, the bullpen is ready to go. [autotag]Nick Ficarrotta[/autotag] is coming off an impressive 6 1/3-inning, 90+ pitch outing against Alabama in the conference tournament, and [autotag]Blake Purnell[/autotag] is available to eat some innings too. Winning this game is crucial because whoever loses will have to play two on Sunday to force a final tiebreaker game on Monday.

Offensively, [autotag]Sterlin Thompson[/autotag] broke out of his little slump with a game-tying solo shot in the third Friday night and [autotag]Colby Halter[/autotag] went big fly to put the Gators out front. Those were two of the hottest bats for Florida at the start of the season (Thompson has been good all year), so it’s good to see them going.

[autotag]Wyatt Langford[/autotag] struggled against CMU, going 0-for-5 with three strikeouts. Chalk that up to some nerves or pressure and expect him to bounce back against Oklahoma. [autotag]Jac Caglianone[/autotag] continues to be the best non-redshirt decision of Sully’s lifetime. He drove in three on a pair of hits Friday, and fellow freshman [autotag]Ty Evans[/autotag] has also been a difference-maker at the plate and in the field.

Oklahoma is a good team. They beat up on Liberty en route to a 16-3 victory, and Gator Nation isn’t forgetful of the fact that the Flames took two of three to start UF’s season off sour. If Neely and Co. can keep the Sooners’ offense at bay, the Gators should have a chance to win this game.