Gators Baseball vs. FSU: Sunshine State Midweek Matchup

Florida Gators baseball looks to chop down No. 20 Florida State in Gainesville on Tuesday.

No. 23 Florida (14-3), which fell 14 spots in the latest D1baseball rankings after a series loss to High Point University (9-7). The Gators lost the first two games of the series 7-2 and 6-2. Florida salvaged a 12-11 win Sunday to avoid the sweep. 

“Am I pleased with how we played? No,” UF coach Kevin O’Sullivan said. “Am I pleased with how we dealt with adversity? No, not in the slightest bit. Am I pleased with how we started the game after getting beat soundly yesterday? No.”

Junior pitcher Luke McNeillie is the probable starter against FSU (13-2) after senior Billy Barlow pitched in the Sunday game against High Point. McNeillie has pitched 7.2 innings in four appearances on the season while recording nine strikeouts and allowing just two runs.

However, it’ll likely be the battle of the offenses, rather than any pitching duels. 

The Seminoles come into the game on a nine-game winning streak. The Gators’ pitching staff will have its hands full with Florida State, which collected three run-rule wins out of its five games last week. 

The Seminoles hold a team batting average of .310 with 9.1 runs per game. Meanwhile, the Gators’ pitching staff holds a 3.47 ERA. 

On the other end, Florida’s bats will need to take advantage of the Seminoles pitching staff, which holds a 3.71 ERA. Florida has a team batting average of .313 with 7.7 runs per game. 

Sophomore infielder Brendan Lawson and freshman outfielder Kyle Jones have been the motors for the Gators. Lawson leads the team with a .418 batting average with 25 RBI and eight home runs. Jones follows right behind Lawson with a .397 batting average and 18 RBI with two home runs. 

The hopeful return of Blake Cyr, who was held out during the High Point series with a thumb injury, will help the Gators. The senior is batting .365 with 12 RBIs this season.

“We’ve got some things to clean up at the plate,” O’Sullivan said. “Landon had a big home run and two hits, so we got some production up and down the lineup. It’ll be really interesting to see this week how valuable Blake Cyr is.”

Florida State leads the series against the Gators, 135–129–1. Florida beat the Seminoles in its last matchup in Gainesville, 5-4, with a four-RBI performance from Lawson, including a three-run shot in the fifth. The teams will play against at 6 p.m. March 24 in Jacksonville and close the three-game set at Dick Howser Stadium in Tallahassee at 7 p.m. April 7.

First pitch Tuesday is set for 6:30 p.m. (SEC Network+) at Condron Family Ballpark with live coverage on 98.1-FM/AM-850 WRUF starting at 6:25 p.m.

Category: Baseball, College Baseball, Gator Sports, Gators Baseball