Florida also led the conference with five First Team honorees.
Hoover, Ala. – Fresh off the program’s 16th SEC Regular Season Championship, a conference-leading seven members of the Orange & Blue were named to the All-SEC Baseball Team on Monday afternoon featuring five players who earned First Team honors.
Five of the 12 student-athletes on the All-SEC First Team are Gators including the entire starting infield outside of third base. First baseman Jac Caglianone<https://floridagators.com/sports/baseball/roster/jac-caglianone/15489>, second baseman Cade Kurland<https://floridagators.com/sports/baseball/roster/cade-kurland/15514>, shortstop Josh Rivera<https://floridagators.com/sports/baseball/roster/josh-rivera/15504>, outfielder Wyatt Langford<https://floridagators.com/sports/baseball/roster/wyatt-langford/15497> and relief pitcher Brandon Neely<https://floridagators.com/sports/baseball/roster/brandon-neely/15499> all collected First Team All-SEC accolades.
Starting pitcher Brandon Sproat<https://floridagators.com/sports/baseball/roster/brandon-sproat/15508> represented Florida on the All-SEC Second Team, in addition to Luke Heyman<https://floridagators.com/sports/baseball/roster/luke-heyman/15522> and Kurland, who also received recognition as Freshman All-SEC. Five of Florida’s seven honorees are first-time All-SEC recipients, with Langford and Neely being the lone two-time All-SEC Gators despite earning their first-career First Team awards.
Beginning with Langford, the reigning First Team All-American is finally a First Team All-SEC player after being named to the Second Team one year ago. The Trenton, Fla. native is in line for career highs in every slash category, batting .399/.527/.827 with 16 homers, 20 doubles, 66 runs, 41 RBI and more walks (44) than strikeouts (34). Langford ranks second in the SEC in batting average, runs scored and on-base percentage while leading the conference in slugging.
The two-way-playing Caglianone was named the SEC’s top first baseman in a year in which he has slashed .350/.408/.816 with a nation-leading and program-record 28 home runs. The Tampa, Fla. native has also added 13 doubles, 62 runs and 76 RBI to his resume, the latter of which ranks second in the SEC and tied for fourth in a single season at UF. With 177 total bases, Caglianone boasts nine more bases than the next-closest player in the conference.
As a leading candidate for the Brooks Wallace Award for the nation’s top shortstop, Rivera is primed for career highs in practically every offensive statistic including batting average (.361), OBP (.460), slugging (.629), home runs (14), runs scored (56), RBI (58), walks (35) and steals (13). The Avon Park, Fla. product has also been elite on the defensive end, wielding a .968 fielding percentage backed by just six errors in 185 total chances.
In his first year of collegiate baseball, Kurland claimed the SEC’s top spot at the keystone by hitting .317/.417/.613 with more homers (15) than any Gator in a season in the history of the position. Kurland led all SEC freshmen with 62 runs scored while totaling 14 doubles, 44 RBI and three stolen bases behind a robust 1.030 OPS.
Capping off the First Team honorees, Neely solidified UF’s closer role this season and paced the SEC with a perfect 10 saves in 10 opportunities. The Seville, Fla. native worked to a 3.65 ERA, 1.22 WHIP and .221 batting average against across 24 appearances spanning 37 frames. Neely struck out 52 batters while walking just 14, translating to 12.6 strikeouts per nine innings.
As Florida’s lone Second Team player, Sproat has paced the squad with 78 innings pitched during the regular season across 14 starts. The fourth-year Gator owns a 4.85 ERA, 1.17 WHIP and .200 BAA this season, all the while posting a 7-3 record on the hill. The Pace, Fla. product posted 100 strikeouts for the first time in his career.
Rounding out the group, Heyman represented the Gators on the Freshman All-SEC Team alongside Kurland. Seeing action in 39 games including 35 starts, the Lake Brantley graduate racked up 79 total bases, nine homers, 33 RBI and 24 runs scored. Entering the SEC Tournament, Heyman is slashing .336/.387/.603 in 131 at bats.
The Gators return to action on Wednesday evening at the SEC Tournament in Hoover, Ala. Florida plays the winner of No. 9-seed Alabama and No. 8-seed Kentucky at approximately 5:30 p.m. ET.
2023 SEC Baseball Awards
Player of the Year: Dylan Crews, LSU
Pitcher of the Year: Paul Skenes, LSU
Freshman of the Year: Charlie Condon, Georgia
Co-Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Ben Anderson, Georgia
Co-Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Andrew Pinckney, Alabama
Coach of the Year: Dave Van Horn, Arkansas
First Team All-SEC
C: Cole Messina, South Carolina
1B: Jac Caglianone<https://floridagators.com/sports/baseball/roster/jac-caglianone/15489>, Florida
2B: Cade Kurland<https://floridagators.com/sports/baseball/roster/cade-kurland/15514>, Florida
3B: Tommy White, LSU
SS: Josh Rivera<https://floridagators.com/sports/baseball/roster/josh-rivera/15504>, Florida
OF: Dylan Crews, LSU
OF: Wyatt Langford<https://floridagators.com/sports/baseball/roster/wyatt-langford/15497>, Florida
OF: Ethan Petry, South Carolina
SP: Paul Skenes, LSU
SP: Hagen Smith, Arkansas
RP: Brandon Neely<https://floridagators.com/sports/baseball/roster/brandon-neely/15499>, Florida
DH/UT: Hunter Hines, Mississippi State
Second Team All-SEC
C: Calvin Harris, Ole Miss
1B: Charlie Condon, Georgia
2B: Emilien Pitre, Kentucky
3B: Luke Mann, Missouri*
3B: Bryson Ware, Auburn*
SS: Jacob Gonzalez, Ole Miss
OF: Kemp Alderman, Ole Miss
OF: Enrique Bradfield Jr., Vanderbilt
OF: Andrew Pinckney, Alabama*
OF: Jared Dickey, Tennessee*
SP: Devin Futrell, Vanderbilt
SP: Brandon Sproat<https://floridagators.com/sports/baseball/roster/brandon-sproat/15508>, Florida
RP: Nick Maldonado, Vanderbilt
DH/UT: Kendall Diggs, Arkansas
Freshman All-SEC Team
Charlie Condon, Georgia
Ethan Petry, South Carolina
Ike Irish, Auburn
Cade Kurland<https://floridagators.com/sports/baseball/roster/cade-kurland/15514>, Florida
Colby Shelton, Alabama
Jared Jones, LSU
Jace LaViolette, Texas A&M
Alton Davis II, Alabama
Dakota Jordan, Mississippi State
Gage Wood, Arkansas
RJ Austin, Vanderbilt
Luke Heyman<https://floridagators.com/sports/baseball/roster/luke-heyman/15522>, Florida
SEC All-Defensive Team
C: Fernando Gonzalez, Georgia
1B: Drew Williamson, Alabama*
1B: Hunter Gilliam, Kentucky*
2B: Emilien Pitre, Kentucky
3B: Davis Diaz, Vanderbilt
SS: Jim Jarvis, Alabama
OF: Enrique Bradfield, Jr., Vanderbilt
OF: Dylan Crews, LSU
OF: Tavian Josenberger, Arkansas*
OF: Kason Howell, Auburn*
P: Hagen Smith, Arkansas
*Ties (Ties are not broken)
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