The No. 4 Co-SEC Champion Florida Gators baseball team had six players earn All-SEC Honors on Monday afternoon but was shutout of the First Team recognition entirely.
Pitchers Alex Faedo and JJ Schwarz, catcher JJ Schwarz and outfielder Nelson Maldonado all earned Second Team All-SEC honors. Infielders Deacon Liput and Dalton Guthrie were named to the All-SEC Defensive team.
Michael Byrne made his first appearance on an All-SEC team. After earning the closer role for the Gators in the beginning of the year, Byrne went on to tie the school record for saves in a season (13). Byrne led the Gators in appearances (27) and ERA (1.97). His 56 strikeouts are fourth best on the team, trailing only the three weekend starters.
Alex Faedo, a junior, also made his first postseason All-SEC team. Faedo moved from Sunday starter in 2016 to Friday night starter in 2017 but put together a 7-2 record with 106 strikeouts to just 30 walks and a sub 3.00 ERA (2.89). Faedo’s 106 strikeouts were second best in the SEC and his 90.1 innings pitched ranked fourth in the conference.
Schwarz (DH/Utility) started slowly this season but came on late. Schwarz led the Gators with nine home runs and 46 RBI, while batting .289 for the season. He hit better in conference play (.318) with six of his nine home runs and 30 RBI vs. SEC opponents. Schwarz was previously named to the SEC All-Freshman team (2015) and the 2nd Team All-SEC (2016).
Singer is making his first postseason All-SEC team appearance. The sophomore put together a team low 2.67 ERA (among pitchers with more than 30 IP) and a 7-3 record. His 97.2 innings pitched led the SEC and his three complete games were tied for the best in the league. His 89 strikeouts also ranked 8th best in the conference.
2017 SEC BASEBALL AWARDS
Player of the Year: Brent Rooker, Mississippi State
Pitcher of the Year: Sean Hjelle, Kentucky
Freshman of the Year: Braden Shewmake, Texas A&M
Coach of the Year: Nick Mingione, Kentucky
Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Zach Logue, Kentucky
First-Team All-SEC C: Grant Koch, Arkansas
1B: Brent Rooker, Mississippi State
2B: Braden Shewmake, Texas A&M
3B: Jordan Rodgers, Tennessee
SS: Ryan Gridley, Mississippi State
OF: Greg Deichmann, LSU
OF: Tristan Pompey, Kentucky
OF: Jeren Kendall, Vanderbilt
DH/UT: Michael Curry, Georgia
SP: Kyle Wright, Vanderbilt
*SP: Sean Hjelle, Kentucky
*SP: Alex Lange, LSU
RP: Logan Salow, Kentucky
Second-Team All-SEC Team
C: Troy Squires, Kentucky
1B: Evan White, Kentucky
2B: Riley Mahan, Kentucky
3B: Colby Bortles, Ole Miss
*SS: Kramer Robertson, LSU
*SS: Jax Biggers, Arkansas
OF: Jonah Todd, Auburn
OF: Jake Mangum, Mississippi State
OF: Chandler Taylor, Alabama
DH/UT: JJ Schwarz, Florida
SP: Alex Faedo, Florida
SP: Brady Singer, Florida
RP: Michael Byrne, Florida
Freshman All-SEC Team
C: Hunter Coleman, Texas A&M
1B: Andre Lipcius, Tennessee
2B: Braden Shewmake, Texas A&M
3B: Josh Smith, LSU
SS: Cam Shepherd, Georgia
OF: Carlos Cortes, South Carolina
OF: Zach Watson, LSU
OF: Dominic Fletcher, Arkansas
DH/UT: Logan Foster, Texas A&M
SP: Ryan Rolison, Ole Miss
SP: Eric Walker, LSU
RP: T.J. Sikkema, Missouri
SEC All-Defensive Team
C: Michael Papierski, LSU
1B: Evan White, Kentucky
2B: Deacon Liput, Florida
3B: Josh Smith, LSU
SS: Dalton Guthrie, Florida
OF: Jeren Kendall, Vanderbilt
OF: Jonah Todd, Auburn
OF: Jake Mangum, Mississippi State
P: Brigham Hill, Texas A&M
* – Denotes a tie in voting. Ties are not broken.