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A 1-11 start to SEC play has Florida on the cusp of missing the NCAA Baseball Tournament after reaching the College World Series in back-to-back years, but there's still a path to the playoffs and it starts with a sweep against Missouri.
Technically, it started with a series win over Florida State on Tuesday, but the Gators have already knocked over the first domino, so now all eyes are on Florida vs. Mizzou. The Tigers are the only team with a worse record against the SEC at 0-12, and the Gators can't afford to drop a game to them this weekend. Of course, sweeping any SEC team is easier said than done, even if it's at the bottom of the conference.
Florida is dealing with the same injuries it has for most of the year. Left-handed starter Pierce Coppola has missed most of his redshirt junior season and doesn't appear any closer to a return. Left-handed reliever Frankie Menendez is out for the year after undergoing Tommy John surgery, and second baseman Cade Kurland is also officially done for the season.
Kyle Jones isn't on the injury report this week, but that could be a sign of a redshirt attempt rather than a return. The newest name on the availability report is senior outfielder Ty Evas, who has had a tough go of it at the plate but played on Tuesday. Sante Fe transfer Matthew Jenkins is also unavailable and has been for several weeks.
NOTES: Jackson Barberi gets the midweek start once again for Florida. Kevin O'Sullivan has gone with him over the past few weeks, and he's seen a decent amount of success, including three innings of one-run ball against Florida State last week. He's cut down on walks and seems to be locating better. Stetson should be a manageable lineup for him, but anything can happen.
Zane Coppersmith opened the season on D1Baseball's list of the top-50 relievers. The redshirt junior was expected to step into the closer role after serving as the Hatters' setup man in 2024, but he's only recorded one save in 15 appearances. Now Stetson is testing him out as a midweek starter, but he could be working in an opener role. His fastball is up to the mid-90s and he's developed a slider this year, but it's a limited arsenal that Florida should be able to hit.
Stetson's doesn't have a 1.000-plus OPS hitter on its roster but a trio of lineup regulars are in the .900s. Juniors Isaiah Barkett (.958) and Lorenzo Meola (.995) lead the program with a .387 and .345 average, respectively. Meola is the power bat on the team with seven homer runs and 32 runs batted in. Both have 40-plus hits on the year, and Barkett has played nine fewer games than Meola.
The other bat to watch out for is sophomore Juan De la Cruz (.945 OPS). He's flashed some power with four home runs and is a reliable RBI guy with 24, good for second on the team. All three of these guys walk nearly as much as they strike out, and Barkett has almost double the number of walks than Ks.
TUESDAY (6:30 p.m. EDT)
Florida has seemingly figured something out over the last week, and it would be nice to see a run-rule win against a mid-major opponent in the midweek. Stetson might throw several pitchers in this one, so double-digit runs for Florida seem possible.
Game prediction: Florida wins comfortably, 9-2.
Follow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, as well as Bluesky, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.
This article originally appeared on Gators Wire: Florida Gators baseball vs. Stetson Hatters game preview
Continue reading...
Technically, it started with a series win over Florida State on Tuesday, but the Gators have already knocked over the first domino, so now all eyes are on Florida vs. Mizzou. The Tigers are the only team with a worse record against the SEC at 0-12, and the Gators can't afford to drop a game to them this weekend. Of course, sweeping any SEC team is easier said than done, even if it's at the bottom of the conference.
Florida is dealing with the same injuries it has for most of the year. Left-handed starter Pierce Coppola has missed most of his redshirt junior season and doesn't appear any closer to a return. Left-handed reliever Frankie Menendez is out for the year after undergoing Tommy John surgery, and second baseman Cade Kurland is also officially done for the season.
Kyle Jones isn't on the injury report this week, but that could be a sign of a redshirt attempt rather than a return. The newest name on the availability report is senior outfielder Ty Evas, who has had a tough go of it at the plate but played on Tuesday. Sante Fe transfer Matthew Jenkins is also unavailable and has been for several weeks.
Projected Starting Lineup: Florida Gators
| Pos. | Player Name | AVG | OBP | SLG | AB | R | H | HR | RBI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C | Luke Heyman | .315 | .414 | .550 | 111 | 24 | 35 | 7 | 25 |
| 1B | Brendan Lawson | .312 | .440 | .544 | 125 | 29 | 39 | 8 | 39 |
| 2B | Justin Nadeau | .265 | .419 | .398 | 98 | 23 | 26 | 2 | 13 |
| 3B | Bobby Boser | .317 | .419 | .593 | 145 | 42 | 46 | 11 | 39 |
| SS | Colby Shelton | .369 | .441 | .604 | 149 | 32 | 55 | 6 | 30 |
| LF | Blake Cyr | .284 | .387 | .474 | 116 | 25 | 33 | 6 | 18 |
| CF | Hayden Yost | .273 | .375 | .382 | 110 | 20 | 30 | 1 | 20 |
| RF | Ashton Wilson | .171 | .358 | .268 | 41 | 12 | 7 | 1 | 4 |
| DH-L | Brody Donay | .321 | .459 | .679 | 106 | 27 | 34 | 9 | 22 |
| DH-R | Landon Stripling | .259 | .385 | .376 | 85 | 19 | 22 | 2 | 16 |
Probable Starters: Game 1 - Tuesday (6:30 p.m. ET)
| Team | Pitcher | Record | ERA |
| FLORIDA | RHP Jackson Barberi | 1-1 | 4.84 |
| STETSON | RHP Zane Coppersmith | 4-2 | 7.27 |
NOTES: Jackson Barberi gets the midweek start once again for Florida. Kevin O'Sullivan has gone with him over the past few weeks, and he's seen a decent amount of success, including three innings of one-run ball against Florida State last week. He's cut down on walks and seems to be locating better. Stetson should be a manageable lineup for him, but anything can happen.
Zane Coppersmith opened the season on D1Baseball's list of the top-50 relievers. The redshirt junior was expected to step into the closer role after serving as the Hatters' setup man in 2024, but he's only recorded one save in 15 appearances. Now Stetson is testing him out as a midweek starter, but he could be working in an opener role. His fastball is up to the mid-90s and he's developed a slider this year, but it's a limited arsenal that Florida should be able to hit.
Other Players to Watch
Stetson's doesn't have a 1.000-plus OPS hitter on its roster but a trio of lineup regulars are in the .900s. Juniors Isaiah Barkett (.958) and Lorenzo Meola (.995) lead the program with a .387 and .345 average, respectively. Meola is the power bat on the team with seven homer runs and 32 runs batted in. Both have 40-plus hits on the year, and Barkett has played nine fewer games than Meola.
The other bat to watch out for is sophomore Juan De la Cruz (.945 OPS). He's flashed some power with four home runs and is a reliable RBI guy with 24, good for second on the team. All three of these guys walk nearly as much as they strike out, and Barkett has almost double the number of walks than Ks.
Series History
| OVERALL | 87-36 |
| AT HOME | 49-11 |
| AWAY | 37-25 |
| NEUTRAL | 1-0 |
Follow the Action
TUESDAY (6:30 p.m. EDT)
- Watch: SEC Network+
- Listen: ESPN 98.1FM/850AM WRUF
- Live Stream: fuboTV (try it free)
Predictions
Florida has seemingly figured something out over the last week, and it would be nice to see a run-rule win against a mid-major opponent in the midweek. Stetson might throw several pitchers in this one, so double-digit runs for Florida seem possible.
Game prediction: Florida wins comfortably, 9-2.
Follow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, as well as Bluesky, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.
This article originally appeared on Gators Wire: Florida Gators baseball vs. Stetson Hatters game preview
Continue reading...
