Four Florida Gators have earned Preseason All-America Honors ahead of the 2023 season as Hurston Waldrep, Brandon Sproat, Wyatt Langford, and BT Riopelle have been selected across four publications.
HURSTON WALDREP
The Southern Miss transfer comes in as the #14 NCAA prospect in the 2023 MLB Draft, according to D1 Baseball. Waldrep competed at Southern Miss for two seasons, posting a record of 7-2 with a 3.22 ERA and 156 strikeouts in 28 career appearances spanning 106 1/3 innings. The right-hander threw 90 frames and struck out 140 batters in 2022, translating to a 14 strikeouts per nine innings. His season earned him 2022 third-team All-American honors (D1Baseball). His dominate collegiate campaign continued this fall where Waldrep fired four scoreless frames against Georgia and Stetson, highlighted by an immaculate inning against the Hatters.
Waldrep’s preseason All-America accolades include three first-team honors from Baseball America, Collegiate Baseball, and D1Baseball. His sole second-team honors come from Perfect Game. His name can also be found on the preseason 2023 SEC Pitcher of the Year Watch list.
BRANDON SPROAT
Florida’s hard throwing right-handed pitcher is back for another season after not reaching an agreement with the New York Mets, despite being drafted in the 3rd round of the MLB Draft.
Back in Gator Country for a fourth campaign, Sproat collected Southeast All-Region Second Team honors in 2022 after pitching to a 9-4 record and 3.43 ERA across 89 2/3 frames. Hailing from Pace, Fla., Sproat was tremendous for the Gators down the stretch, going 5-0 with a 1.59 ERA and .218 batting average against in his last six starts of the season. The right-hander wields a 3.92 ERA and 108 strikeouts in 117 1/3 career innings. On. Jan. 20, Sproat was named to D1Baseball’s SEC Pitcher of the Year Watch List.
The 6-3, 215-pound pitcher finds himself as the #31 NCAA prospect in the 2023 MLB draft, according to D1Baseball. MLB Pipeline has Sproat as the #78 overall prospect.
Sproat’s Preseason All-America honors include a second team selection from Collegiate Baseball and a third team bid from Baseball America.
WYATT LANGFORD
Entering the 2023 season as a potential Golden Spikes Award front runner, Langford is coming off one of the greatest seasons in the history of the Orange & Blue. While slashing .355/.447/.867, the Trenton, Fla. native tied Florida’s single-season home run record with an SEC-leading 26 big flies. The 2022 First Team All-American started all 66 games for the Gators a season ago, finishing with three triples, nine doubles, 73 runs, 63 RBI and seven steals. Perhaps most impressively, he turned in a 1.000 fielding percentage across 125 chances while playing in the outfield for the first time in his career.
Langford totaled just four at bats in 2021, gathering one infield single as a true freshman; that makes his 2022 breakout season that much more impressive.
The 6-1, 220-pound outfielder was named a 2022 First Team All-American by D1Baseball and a Second Team All-American by Baseball America, NCBWA, Perfect Game and ABCA/Rawlings.
Langford’s preseason All-America honors include four first team selections (Baseball America, Collegiate Baseball, D1Baseball, Perfect Game).
BT RIOPELLE
The Coastal Carolina transfer posted his best collegiate season in a Gator uniform, hitting for an average of .304 in 2022, collecting 55 RBI’s and 15 HRs across 64 games played.
The 6-0, 215-pound catcher had his best defensive season in his collegiate career, posting a fielding percentage of .992% in 2022.
Riopelle’s career honors include 2021 Second Team All-Sun Belt, 2022 Buster Posey National Collegiate Catcher of the Year Semifinalist, and 2022 First Team All-SEC.
Riopelle lands on the 2023 Preseason SEC Player of the Year Watch List (D1Baseball) and 2023 Third Team Preseason All-American (Collegiate Baseball).