Florida catcher Brody Donay (29) claps in the dugout during the third inning of an NCAA college baseball matchup Tuesday, March 25, 2025 at VyStar Ballpark in Jacksonville, Fla. FSU rallied to defeat UF 8-4 off a walk-off grand slam from Alex Lodise in the ninth inning. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union]

Gators Baseball Gears Up for Fall Ball

After losing last season in the NCAA Tournament, Gators baseball treated the season like a piece of paper — it crumbled it up and threw it away. Since then, it has lost a few players and recruits to the 2025 MLB Draft.

However, the Gators bolstered their lineup not only in recruiting but also in the transfer portal.

Monday marks the start of fall ball — the month-long period of fall practice that the NCAA allows college baseball teams. It features practices and scrimmages for players to showcase and evaluate talent in game situations. The period also gives the coaching staff a chance to evaluate its roster.

After losing seven players to the draft, including their leader in batting average, Colby Shelton, and leader in home runs and stolen bases, Bobby Boser, Florida looked to add some players via the transfer portal to revamp its lineup.

Enter Ethan Surowiec. The second-year infielder from Ole Miss transferred in this summer and could look to make an immediate impact with Florida. In his freshman year with the Rebels, he had a limited sample size. He batted .375 with two home runs and eight RBIs in 16 at-bats.

He really showed his potential in the Northwoods League (NWL) with the Duluth Huskies. In 96 at-bats, he slashed .383/.471/.781 with an OPS well over 1.200. He led the NWL in both home runs (17) and RBIs (68), earning league MVP.

NWL HOMERUN LEADER & NWL MVP Ethan Surowiec@SurowiecE @DuluthHuskies @NWLbaseball pic.twitter.com/bHWP6hHAqV

— Keira Orton (@KeiraReeceOrton) August 9, 2025

Florida also kept outfielder Jaden Bastian in the state. The former Jacksonville University speedster will take the field during the fall — and he could be one of the most underrated pickups for the Gators.

Bastian spent two seasons with the Dolphins, appearing in 91 games while starting in 79. He was one of JU’s best, batted .302 with 33 RBIs and 11 home runs. He can also fly around the bases. Bastian led the Atlantic Sun Conference in triples (5) and stolen bases (36). Florida was 78th in the country in stolen bases last year, so he should help.

https://twitter.com/JUBaseball/status/1905770248705581433

With Kyle Jones expecting to return from injury, paired with a rotation of Justin Nadeau, Hayden Yost and Blake Cyr, the Gators’ outfield may make positive strides after an injury-riddled 2025 campaign.

Fall practice will be a great opportunity to see Florida baseball’s 19 newcomers — including nine true freshmen, as all practices are open to the public. They will get their first taste of Gators baseball over the next month.

Florida will play Jacksonville University on Oct. 31 in Jacksonville and Georgia Southern at Condron Family Ballpark on Nov. 9.

Category: Baseball, Gator Sports, Gators Baseball, SEC