Florida’s 11-4 baseball victory over Alabama sure didn’t look pretty at the start but it certainly looked like a masterpiece when it was over Friday night.
The Gators found themselves in a 4-0 hole after four innings during which they were outhit by the Crimson Tide 8-1. But Florida then scored 11 unanswered runs to send most of the 2,357 fans at McKethan Stadium home happy.
“I’m not quite sure I’ve ever seen a game that two-sided,” Florida head coach Kevin O’Sullivan said. “This was the first game I saw our offense look like it did last year.”
After sleepwalking through the first four innings, the Gators scored all 11 runs in their final four innings at the plate. They exploded for 14 hits in those same four innings.
The Gators gave Alabama senior right-hander Austin Hyatt his first loss since Florida beat him last May in Tuscaloosa. In his last eight starts, Hyatt was 6-0 with two no decisions.
After Florida took a 5-4 lead in the 7th inning, freshman Greg Larson got into trouble on the mound. He hit the leadoff batter and then walked Alabama cleanup hitter Kent Matthes on four pitches. O’Sullivan brought in closer Billy Bullock.
Brandon May dropped down a sacrifice bunt to move the runners to second and third with one out before Bullock struck out Vin DiFazio and Tyler Odle to end the threat.
“He did a really nice job,” O’Sullivan said. “He made some good pitches. We’re very confident with him out there. He’s only been in this closer mode for two and a half weeks. I think it fits his personality, though. He doesn’t think about having to go through their lineup multiple times. He just lifts his leg and cuts it loose.”
Bullock strolled through a quick ninth inning to end the game and earn his fifth save.
In the Florida offensive storm, there was no more important inning than the seventh. Daniel Pigott had a one-out single up the middle. Avery Barnes followed by singling into right field, moving Pigott to second. After Josh Adams struck out looking, Buddy Munroe doubled down the left-field line to score Pigott and move Barnes to third.
The big blow came when senior Brandon McArthur lined a single up the middle to score the two runs that gave the Gators a 5-4 lead. The hit ended an eight-pitch at-bat for McArthur.
“I was listening to (Florida assistant coach) Brad (Weitzel) a lot during that at-bat,” McArthur said. “He was keeping me focused. All we needed was a single.”
Nine of the Gators’ 11 runs came with two outs. The clutch hitting was something that had been missing from the Florida offense, but McArthur said Florida’s hard work at practice this week paid off.
“We work on it every day,” McArthur said. “It’s all about adjustments that we had to make. We put a lot of time and effort into it so that when those situations come up, we’re ready to handle it.”
Catcher Buddy Munroe and first baseman Preston Tucker each had three hits, while designated hitter Pigott, left fielder Avery Barnes and McArthur had two hits each.
Florida put the game away in the eighth, scoring six runs on five hits. Matt den Dekker doubled and advanced to third on Pigott’s infield single. Barnes grounded out to first, driving in den Dekker. Josh Adams walked and Munroe singled to center, knocking in Pigott. After Jerico Weitzel walked to load the bases, Tucker doubled to center, scoring three runs. Riley Cooper then tripled to center to bring home Tucker.
The Gators had six players in the starting lineup with an RBI, with Tucker having three and Munroe, McArthur and Cooper two each.
Florida starting pitcher Jeff Barfield went only three innings, giving up nine hits and four earned runs. He had a sub-2 ERA coming into the game, but Barfield struggled in the early innings.
“Jeff obviously didn’t have his best stuff tonight,” O’Sullivan said. “He kept us in the game, and that’s the mark of a true competitor.”
Clint Franklin (2-0) bridged the gap to the end of the game, tying a career high with four innings of work against the SEC’s top offense. He allowed only one base runner on a Ross Wilson infield single.
“I wanted to keep going,” Franklin said. “I really started feeling it in that last inning.”
The series continues at 4 p.m. Saturday at McKethan Stadium. It will be a matchup between freshman left-handers as Florida sends Nick Maronde (1-1, 1.88 ERA) against Alabama’s Adam Morgan (3-1, 3.10 ERA).