Florida Baseball Catchers, Pitchers Ready for Opening Day
With coach Kevin O’Sullivan having addressed the Gators’ largest controversy, Florida baseball’s clubhouse’s tone has simmered into a quiet confidence. Recruits like Ethan Suroweic slotted into the Gators lineup without much fanfare. Aiden King and Liam Peterson continue to collect preseason awards. And, the Gators’ first opponent provides an opportunity to show the conference why O’Sullivan believes, “‘We are Florida still.’
AUB, a non-conference mid-major, seems to be Florida’s unfortunate punching bag before SEC play heats up. The Gators have about a month to ready themselves for conference foes, starting in March. Before then, they will face No. 25 Miami and No. 12 Florida State.
Buried in the psyche of Florida’s pitching and catching staffs lies a don’t-you-dare-doubt-us attitude and a prove-it mentality for the 2026 season.
Catchers bond as brothers
Any position battles can cause divisions, but Florida’s catchers aren’t letting the competition disrupt their bond. Karson Bowen, a transfer from TCU, is projected to start for the Gators as Baseball America’s No. 79 impact transfer. He batted .333 with the Horned Frogs, slugging .425.
AJ Malzone and Cole Stanford will back up Bowen. The three have bonded over being an unofficial Floridian. Malzone, a junior from Wabash Valley College, had never seen Florida’s mascot in the wild before. He grew up near Chicago, where the gator population i was contained in zoos.
“So when I got here [to Florida], I saw a couple, and I was taking pictures and everything. I was like, ‘This is so cool. I felt like a little kid,” Malzone said.
But one day, after Malzone had transferred in July to Florida, a handful of Malzone’s friends took him wakeboarding on a lake near Gainesville. Terrified, Malzone asked if there would be gators in the water, but they reassured him there were none. Little did he know that any bodies of water within the state’s borders run the risk of reptilians. Malzone avoided the gators that day, but has encountered a few since then.
Luckily for Malzone, the only “gators” at Condron Family Ballpark will be the Gators on the diamond – and the occasional Albert appearance – and the catching group has little to fear. Frequently dining together, Malzone referred to Bowen and Stanford as his “brothers,” learning how to adapt to SEC baseball together and pushing each other to be great.
“This catching group, out of any catching group throughout my career, has been the best catching group I’ve been with,” Malzone said. “Our connection and bond isn’t like most catching groups. We compete at a high level together, and everyone’s trying to earn a spot, but at the same time, we’re each other’s biggest fans.”
Pitching depth in the rotation and bullpen
While Florida’s starting rotation has attracted most of the attention, Florida’s next step will be deciding on a closer. Jake Clemente took over the role last season midseason, posting a team-low 1.33 ERA and .173 batting average against in his final 27 innings. Swept up by the Miami Marlins in the seventh round of last year’s MLB draft, the Gators now have to fill the vacant spot.
Peterson and King slot firmly in the 1-2 spots, and Florida will test where Luke McNellie fits best. He’s available as a midweek option, but he could also serve in the bullpen as an arm to eat up innings in case either Peterson or King doesn’t have a good start.
Bullpen arm Matthew Jenkins, who made nine appearances as a sophomore for the Gators last season, was confident in the Gators’ chances in the SEC from his observations around Florida’s pitchers.
“We have a lot of guys that throw really hard, throw a lot of strikes, and we have a lot of guys that can come in and spin the ball really well,” Jenkins said. “I’m really excited to see how this year turns out. We got a lot of depth on the mound, a lot of depth in all the positions as well. As long as we stay healthy, we’re going to make a deep run.”
Category: Baseball, College Baseball, Feature Sports News, Gators Baseball
