Florida’s baseball team moved to 4-0 on the season, but for the second game in a row it wasn’t as pretty as they would have liked. Bullpen issues continue to be a weakness early in the year.

The Gators built a seven nothing lead heading into the seventh inning, but UCF would not go quietly. Nick Maronde gave up 3 earned runs in the seventh and Greg Larson gave up 3 earned runs in the eighth inning. While the most important thing is the win the Gators cannot let this become a trend. Sunday the Gators gave up six runs to the USF Bulls in the seventh and eighth innings as well. Five of those runs were given up by Maronde and Larson as well.

Everyone knows there are high expectations for this team in 2010, but if the bullpen cannot pull it together it will be hard to win consistently.

By: Calvin McDermid

The Gators opened their season strong this weekend after facing the USF Bulls in a three game series which left the Gators 3-0. The series began on Friday, ending on Sunday in extra innings in McKethan Stadium. Although, completing the sweep was not a complete cakewalk.

The Florida Gators begin their 2010 baseball season with a running start, as they beat South Florida by four runs on Friday evening. Junior, Josh Adams, seemed as if he was the impact player of the game when he went 3-3 at the plate along with 4 RBI. Two home runs by Adams and Maddox enabled them to take an early 4-0 lead. On Saturday, freshman lefty pitcher, Brian Johnson, was the starting pitcher for the Gators with 5.2 scoreless innings. The sophomore outfielder, Tyler Thompson, had a standout night going 2-5 with 4 RBI. Washington and Maddox both hit one run homers to put a few runs on the board. Brian Johnson and his fellow Gators defeated the Bulls 9-1.

Sunday was a completely different story as the Bulls were looking to finally beat the Gators after losing two nights in a row. USF scored five runs in the top of the 8th as they trailed the Gators 3-1. Now, the Bulls were leading the game 6-3. Although, Coach Kevin O’Sullivan and his players had other things on their minds as they were behind by 3 runs in the bottom of the ninth inning. The Gators were looking to complete the sweep and they would not quit fighting for the victory until the last out. The Gators rallied in the ninth to give USF a run for their money which would lead the teams into extra innings. USF shortstop enabled the Gators to score the tying run as he committed a very costly error. Without the error, the Bulls would have packed up and hit the road leaving the town of Gainesville victorious.

Only the Gators got of the McKethan Stadium alive this weekend as they faced the Bulls, but the #7 ranked Gators are facing the UCF Knights on Wednesday evening at 6:30. The Gators are having a extremely successful start to the 2010 baseball season as they look to advance to 4-0 after the three game sweep in Gainesville.

(Information collected from ESPN.com, Gatorzone.com, and from Adam Silverstein from Onlygators.com)
By: Justin Rectenwald

The Florida Gators begin their 2010 baseball season with a running start, as they beat South Florida by four runs on Friday evening. The Gators had four fresh players in the lineup including shortstop, Nolan Fontana, and catcher, Mike Zunino.

The junior out of Jacksonville, Florida, Josh Adams, seemed to be the star player in the season opener for both teams in the Mckethan Stadium in front of over 3,300 fans. Adams was 3-3 with 4 RBI, along with a double and two home runs. The comeback pitcher, Tommy Toledo, who did not play in the 2009 season, had four strikeouts and long with three scattered hits. He only allowed one unearned run in 3.1 innings Friday night. Freshman, Austin Maddox, went 2 for 4 in the opener. But what was more impressive was his first at bat, which was a two-run homer.

Coach Kevin O’Sullivan commented on the comeback of Toledo saying, “It was good to get Tommy back after 16 months. I thought he did really well considering this was the first game of the year, and he had to deal with the jitters. He will be better his next time out. The damage that was done was his own doing with the walks and the hit batters, but it was great to see him out there.” Josh Adams was quoted saying by Gatorzone.com, “We’re getting used to playing with each other. The first homer felt good and I had goose bumps running around the bases.”

The Gators took an early lead as two home runs by Adams and Maddox enabled them to take an early 4-0 lead. The senior, Matt den Dekker, faced the USF junior pitcher, Fontanez, by singling into right center field before Adams knocked one out of the park into the left field bleachers. Although, the Bulls were not done yet as USF had the bases loaded and down by two with Toledo on the mound for the Gators. Despite the possible comeback, the Gators stuck it out and lead by 4 to close the game out.

The Gators are looking forward to a very successful season as they start the long road ahead with a ‘W’ in the season opener. Junior, Josh Adams, seemed as if he was the impact player of the game when he went 3-3 at the plate along with 4 RBI. GSN hit the nail on the head as our staff predicted the score of 6-2 in the victory over the Bulls in the pre-game analysis. GSN would like to wish the Gators good luck in the 2010 season which will all lead to the College World Series in Omaha, Nebraska played this Summer.

(Information collected from Gatorzone.com)
By: Justin Rectenwald

After coming up just short from the college world series, the Florida Gators baseball team will open up this upcoming 2010 season ranked No. 7 by Baseball America, Antonya English reported.

This marks the first time ever since the 2006 season that the Gators have showed up in the Baseball America’s preseason rankings. The Gators will start off the season on Feb. 19th at McKethan Stadium against USF in a three-game series.

Last year was a good year for Florida, finishing 42-22 and also winning the SEC East for the first time since back in 2005.

They will return 20 letter winners, 10 of them who are pitchers, and 5 of them who had a ton of playing time last season. I am excited to see how this years team ends up.

(Antonya English/Gator Report contributed to this story.)

For the first time in their history, the baseball program has landed the #1 ranked recruiting class in 2009. Last season, the Gators had the 18th ranked class, and the highest since 2006 when they were ranked #3. So what exactly makes this class so special? Well let’s check out the details of the Gators’ 2009 recruiting class…

• There are 11 recruits total, with 1 of them being a Junior College transfer.
• 10 of the 11 are from the state of Florida.
• The group includes: 5 pitchers, 3 infielders, 2 catchers, and 1 outfielder
• 9 of them achieved All-State honors
• IF Bryson Smith was named the 2009 American Baseball Division I Player of the Year. He batted .467 with 90 RBI and 21 HR.
• 3B Bobby Borchering was the highest picked player in the MLB Draft ( 16th overall by Arizona )

Matt LaPorta, the former Gator outfielder and SEC Player of the Year, is currently playing for the Cleveland Indians, in fact, he is having a quite successful season. Playing Left Field and First Base, LaPorta is batting .248, with 10 RBI’s, 3 HR’s, 19 runs, and 2 stolen bases. Despite his busy schedule, and the MLB regular season winding down, Matt took some time away from the game to answer a few questions for Gators Sports Nation.

1. How would you describe your time as a Florida Gator and being apart of the baseball program?

Matt Laporta: Being a part of the Gator baseball was such a blessing. It gave me an opportunity to become a better person, student and baseball player. I have developed so many great relationships with teammates and others at the University of Florida . Through baseball their I had the opportunity to go to so many different places that I never would have been if it were not being a part of the University of Florida baseball team.

2. When you were named SEC Player of the Year in your Senior season, what was your first reaction after hearing the news?

M.L: It was such a great feeling because there were so many great players that year who had could have won it also. It also was such a blessing because I trusted In the Lord to go back for my senior year and great things happen because of Jesus not because of me.

6. Last question, do you still keep in touch with any of the coaches or players from Gainesville , and do you plan on attending any games this year?

Former Belleview High School pitching phenom, Frank DeJiulio has made a verbal commitment to the Florida Gators baseball program after rejecting a contract with the Chicago Cubs.

After his senior year at Belleview, DeJiulio played one season at Daytona State College and then was drafted in the 44th round by the Cubs last June. Frank then decided that he would go back to school and not enter the MLB which was a much smarter decision. He received several offers from schools such as Florida, Auburn, Mississippi State, South Carolina, UCF and FAU, and several others. Along with committing to Florida, he is now closer to home. Playing in the Ocala area in high school and now moving right up the road to Gainesville.

DeJiulio will be keeping his choices open whether to turn pro after his first year at UF or even could be after his last year. It’s still early but no matter what I think he’s going to turn out to be real successful and I believe he will be happy with his future draft spot when the time comes.

“It doesn’t affect my draft status at all,” he said. “It just keeps my options open, because Florida is definitely a place I’d want to go. More than likely I’ll play a year or two there..but who knows? (Gathered by Byron Saucer from Ocala Star Banner.)

The Gators will either use the right hand pitcher DeJiulio as a starter or closer. Either one he is going to mow his opponents down with the speed of his pitching.

I have past experiences playing with DeJiulio in high school. Both of our high schools were rivals and it was a battle when Frank was on the mound. He dusted everybody away with his 90+ MPH fastball, and that wasn’t the only good thing about him. What else was crazy about him was his hitting ability. On the offensive side, he could stroke the ball anywhere on the field, even though most of his balls were launched over into the parking lot. Frank has a bright future after playing at the collegiate level. I think he has the potential to becoming a high draft spot after playing for the Gators, and predicting right now, I think Frank will be one of Florida’s top pitchers.