KYLE CURTIS: Young Gator Arms May Lack Experience But Show Plenty Of Promise
Florida baseball got swept at Florida Ballpark by No. 1 Tennessee this past weekend, making it the first time the Gators have lost all three at home in softball and baseball since 2006. But hope is on the way.
By KYLE CURTIS
While the Gators have been going through a rough stretch amid the pitching woes and the batting slumps, all wasn't lost for this young team and there are positives to take away.
Freshman righthander Brandon Neely had a career game vs. the Vols, finishing with seven one-hit innings and one-run baseball while striking out a career-high eight batters in the process.
Neely, coming out high school, was the No. 5 righthanded pitcher for his class and was MLB Pipeline’s No. 205 prospect. He is 6-foot-2, 190 with great athleticism and a fastball sitting in the mid 90s. His fastball also has big-time movement, and that, along with two good breaking balls he can consistently count on. He attended Spruce Creek high school where he served as a dominant pitcher on the school mound while also performing well in showcase events.
After Neely’s strong performance holding the No. 1 team in check a strong duo of Phillip Abner and Nick Ficarotta blanked the Volunteers for the final three innings.
Abner, another highly regarded freshman, is from Charlotte, N.C. Before arriving in Gainesville, Abner could boast a fastball around 90-93 and had a strong slider to compliment a firm changeup. He also showed promise as a hitter in high school, giving potential for a promise as a two-way player later in his career. Abner was the 67th ranked recruit according to Perfect Game for his class along with the 11th best lefthanded pitcher.
In the big picture, both Abner and Neely showed what they were capable of against the best bats the Gators have faced all season. Bad news is that the Gators were not able to turn any of those performances into wins.
In the long run, Florida has an ample supply of talent, but it is inexperienced against a lot of the older veteran teams with multiple Super Seniors. This new era of college sports has teams taking the transfer portal approach rather than attacking recruiting first.
The Gators have dominated the recruiting trail but haven’t shown the product on the diamond. The teams that have shown recent success on the recruiting trail are seeing the product with more experienced teams. B.T. Riopelle is the only Gator transfer (coming from Coastal Carolina) and has also been one of Florida’s biggest producers this year.
The Gators will finish out the season with the relatively easier end of the schedule. They will look to gain some momentum by gaining a few series wins. They'll start this stretch this weekend when they take on Kentucky.
Comments