The No.3 Florida Gators improved to 27-6 (9-3 SEC) after taking two of three games from No. 11 Tennessee inside Lindsey Nelson Stadium.
Gator Country provides three key takeaways from Florida’s series victory over the Volunteers.
ROAD SUCESSS
After playing 20 of their first 22 games in Gainesville, the Gators hadn’t been battle tested on the road. In recent weeks, Florida has proved capable of beating good teams in tough environments away from home. After taking 2/3 from Tennessee, the Gators boast a 9-1 record on the road, including a series sweep against Ole Miss in Oxford.
Oxford and Knoxville are two of the hardest places to play in college baseball, and neither atmosphere fazed Florida. The Gators travel to College Station on May 5th, which will be another challenging road test against the Aggies. However, I wouldn’t be worried about Kevin O’Sullivan’s squad away from Condron Ballpark.
FREE PASSES
Florida’s pitching staff allowed 28 free passes (26 walks 2 HBP) across 26 innings pitched throughout the weekend series. 19 of those came on Saturday, as the Gators walked 18 batters and hit another during the series finale.
Command has been an issue for Kevin O’Sullivan’s squad this season as Florida ranks well outside the top 100 in walks allowed per nine (waiting on official stats to update).
Tennessee scored 14 runs on just seven hits due to the absurd amount of free passes in today’s contest. The Gators roster is filled with talent, but they need to be able to throw the ball over the plate, giving them a chance at competing.
If this season doesn’t end well for Florida, command will be the reason why.
SUNDAY STARTER?
Florida will reexamine their Sunday starting role as Jac Caglianone has not produced on the mound over the last month.
Through his first four starts of 2023, Caglianone completed 20.1 innings, allowing four runs, seven hits, and eight walks while striking out 26 batters. Over his last four starts, the Gators’ two-way player tossed 12.2 innings, allowing 14 runs, 12 hits, and 19 walks while striking out 13.
During today’s game, Caglianone didn’t get out of the first inning after throwing 15 straight balls and walking six batters while recording just two outs against the Vols.
It’s extremely difficult to pinpoint the reasoning behind Caglianone’s recent struggles on the bump. Florida is facing much better competition as they work through SEC play, however, Caglianone’s struggles seem to be more mental than physical. Throwing 15 straight balls and walking six batters in less than an inning of work is something that I have never seen before.
It’s also possible that Caglianone is starting to wear out. Last season, the Tampa native didn’t pitch due to an injury and played in only 28 games. In 2023, Caglianone has played in 33 games while pitching 33 innings. The college baseball regular season is twice as long as the high school regular season, so it’s possible that Caglianone just isn’t used to this workload. Every start has gotten progressively worse over the last four weeks.
Florida has the option to turn to Brandon Neely, who started ten games for the Gators in 2022. LHP Pierce Coppola could be another option, but there’s still no real timetable for his return in 2023.
Whether Caglianone is removed from his Sunday role or not, he’ll play a huge part in the Gators’ pitching staff moving forward. At the begging of the season, Kevin O’Sullivan stated that they will need Caglianone to throw a ton of innings if Florida is going to be as good as they want to be. It may be time to move Caglianone into the bullpen, where a new role may benefit the young superstar.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Although Saturday wasn’t pretty, it’s always good to win the series, especially on the road against the No.11 team in the country. Florida won its eighth-straight series to open the season including its fourth-consecutive in SEC play.