Florida’s four players inside the top-100 is tied for second in the nation.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Four University of Florida players have been ranked by D1Baseball as top-100 college prospects for the 2023 MLB Draft: outfielder Wyatt Langford (No. 5), right-hander pitcher Hurston Waldrep (No. 14), right-hander Brandon Sproat (No. 31) and infielder Josh Rivera (No. 72).
Led by a first-overall pick candidate in Langford at No. 5 overall, Florida’s four players inside the top-100 is tied for second in the nation. Meanwhile, the Gators are one of two schools with four top-75 prospects and one of four programs with three top-50 players.
Across program history, Florida has produced 215 individual draftees. Since Head Coach Kevin O’Sullivan<https://floridagators.com/staff.aspx?staff=33>’s 2008 arrival, 99 different Gators have been drafted including 11 first-round picks – a total which ranks second nationally.
Langford is draft-eligible for the first time in 2023 and is coming off one of the greatest seasons in the history of the Orange & Blue. The Trenton, Fla. native tied Florida’s single-season home run record and paced the Southeastern Conference with 26 long balls en route to First Team All-America status. As one of two Gators to start all 66 games last year, Langford slashed .355/.447/.867 while adding three triples, nine doubles, 73 runs, 63 RBI and seven steals to his resume.
Back in Gator Country for a fourth campaign, Sproat collected Southeast All-Region Second Team honors in 2022 after pitching to a 9-4 record and 3.43 ERA across 89 2/3 frames. Hailing from Pace, Fla., Sproat was tremendous for the Gators down the stretch, going 5-0 with a 1.59 ERA and .218 batting average against in his last six starts of the season. The right-hander wields a 3.92 ERA and 108 strikeouts in 117 1/3 career innings.
Waldrep enters his first season as a Gator after transferring in from Southern Miss during the offseason. Highly regarded as one of the top arms in the nation, Waldrep was named a 2022 Third Team All-American by D1Baseball after churning out 90 frames of 3.20 ERA ball with 140 strikeouts – translating to 14.0 strikeouts per nine innings. The Thomasville, Ga. native was equally brilliant in limited action as a freshman in 2021, working to a 3.35 ERA and .217 batting average against with 16 strikeouts in 16 1/3 innings of work.
Capping off the list, Rivera returns for his fourth year in Orange & Blue after batting .254/.351/.429 with nine homers, two triples, eight doubles, 41 runs, 32 RBI and five stolen bases across 64 games (63 starts) a season ago. As a three-year starter in the Gator infield, Rivera owns a .259/.345/.414 career battling line and .952 fielding percentage. He is one of the most experienced infielders in the SEC, having seen action in 134 games including 131 starts dating back to 2020.
Florida’s 2023 season<https://floridagators.com/sports/baseball/schedule> officially opens at home on Friday, Feb. 17 with the first of three games in a weekend series against Charleston Southern. Fans will have plenty of opportunities to cheer on the Gators at Condron Family Ballpark, as 20 of Florida’s first-22 games take place at home.
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