UF BSB: No. 23 Florida Set for Nashville Showdown at Vanderbilt

The last three series have been won by the home team (Florida in 2018; Vanderbilt in 2019; Florida in 2021), but the Gators have won five of the last six series overall.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – No. 23 Florida visits Vanderbilt at Hawkins Field this upcoming weekend for the first time since 2019, with all three games in the set scheduled to air on national television.

The series kicks off on Friday night with a 7 p.m. ET matchup on ESPN2. Game two will air on SEC Network at 7 p.m. on Saturday, while the finale airs on Sunday at 1 p.m. on ESPN2.

Across the all-time series, the Gators (21-12, 5-7 SEC) boast a dominant 142-76-1 record over the Commodores (23-9, 5-7 SEC) including a 56-47-1 advantage in Nashville. Vanderbilt’s only series victory in the last six three-game sets came in 2019, as Florida has claimed five of the last six series.

Despite being swept by the Commodores in 2019, the Gators have won two of the last three series against Vanderbilt in Nashville. In last year’s series, Florida took two of three games from Vanderbilt in Gainesville, winning the final two matchups (W, 11-8; W, 5-3) after dropping the opener (L, 7-11). Across the last 10 meetings, Florida is 6-4. Over the previous 18 meetings, Florida is 12-6. The Gators are 29-18 vs. Vanderbilt under head coach Kevin O’Sullivan<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__floridagators.com_coaches.aspx-3Frc-3D1445&d=DwIF-g&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=IdZs6gt4INqHOq4-M0thWoIFsOKwJXBfYmsh9S4m2m0r0dkmoEIZ7K8nGojFkLcz&s=Te-suE7gx8_Z901_BRxj4HPsDC5JiDR0yCYd_S7drmg&e= > including 8-10 on the road.

Entering week nine of the season, Florida is ranked as highly as the No. 17 team in the country (USA Today Coaches Poll) and sits at No. 23 in the D1Baseball Top 25.

LAST TIME OUT
Florida dropped a Tuesday matchup at Florida State (L, 0-5) after winning the series over No. 2 Arkansas by taking two of three games (L, 1-8 / W, 7-2 / W, 9-7) against the Razorbacks over the weekend. As a result, Florida snapped Arkansas’ conference-leading streak of 13-straight SEC series victories, which dated back to May 16-18, 2019. The Gators went 3-1 last week overall, also picking up a midweek victory over Florida A&M (W, 13-3).

SCOUTING THE COMMODORES
Picked to finish first in the SEC East in the Preseason Coaches Poll, Vanderbilt enters the weekend with a 23-9 (5-7 SEC) record on the year. The Commodores have lost three-straight conference series (at South Caroliona, vs. No. 1 Tennessee, at Auburn) and have dropped seven of their last eight conference matchups. Vanderbilt is batting .303 as a team and owns a staff ERA of 3.00, backed by a .978 fielding percentage.

BLAKE TAKES SEC HONORS
After pitching in all four games for Florida last week, Purnell was named the SEC Co-Freshman of the Week on Monday. The right-hander went 1-0 with one save and a 1.29 ERA across seven innings pitched, walking none and striking out four. Purnell recorded a 3 1/3-inning save in game two vs. Arkansas to even the series, then earned the win in game three to clinch the series by pitching 1 2/3 perfect innings to finish off the Razorbacks. On the season, Purnell wields a 3-2 record with three saves and a 1.19 ERA across 30.1 innings pitched, and has only allowed an earned run in three of his 19 appearances.

NATIONAL HOME RUN DUO
2021 All-American outfielder Jud Fabian<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__floridagators.com_roster.aspx-3Frp-5Fid-3D15127&d=DwIF-g&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=IdZs6gt4INqHOq4-M0thWoIFsOKwJXBfYmsh9S4m2m0r0dkmoEIZ7K8nGojFkLcz&s=VRp2712A5sUP9PIknKvMXkQ9CcPBbYlaBdHXMIXdhFc&e= > is tied for the SEC lead with 13 home runs (T-ninth nationally) while outfielder Wyatt Langford<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__floridagators.com_roster.aspx-3Frp-5Fid-3D15097&d=DwIF-g&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=IdZs6gt4INqHOq4-M0thWoIFsOKwJXBfYmsh9S4m2m0r0dkmoEIZ7K8nGojFkLcz&s=jGvL9uS-tQHxjM5yjMixGieNPdbJc2ux–KYi9D0KmQ&e= > ranks fourth in the SEC and T-21st nationally with 12 home runs. Fabian and Langford have combined for the second-most home runs (25) of any two-player duo from the same team in the country (Old Dominion, 27: Andy Garriola & Carter Trice), and are one of four teammate duos in the nation with 12-plus homers apiece (only 13 teams have two 10-plus homer players). Either Fabian or Langford has homered in six of the last eight games, but from March 12-25, one of the two players homered in eight-consecutive contests.

SCANNING THE BARCO
As one of 45 players named to the Golden Spikes Award Midseason Watch List last week, left-handed pitcher Hunter Barco<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__floridagators.com_roster.aspx-3Frp-5Fid-3D15091&d=DwIF-g&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=IdZs6gt4INqHOq4-M0thWoIFsOKwJXBfYmsh9S4m2m0r0dkmoEIZ7K8nGojFkLcz&s=bZumXNbrsTew0JcTgMejrLVo83zKNKpl8BK0rD8i3w0&e= > ranks fourth in the SEC with a 2.23 ERA, third with 65 strikeouts (T-24th nationally) T-third with 48 1/3 innings pitched and T-fourth with a .174 batting average against. The Florida ace also ranks 12th in the nation and fifth in the SEC with a 0.83 WHIP. Barco’s ratios translate to 12.1 strikeouts per nine innings, 1.9 walks per nine and a 6.5 strikeout-to-walk ratio. The sophomore* southpaw is 12-3 across his last 18 starts dating back to the 2021 season.

NOTE ON SPROAT
Saturday starter Brandon Sproat<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__floridagators.com_roster.aspx-3Frp-5Fid-3D15106&d=DwIF-g&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=IdZs6gt4INqHOq4-M0thWoIFsOKwJXBfYmsh9S4m2m0r0dkmoEIZ7K8nGojFkLcz&s=bbg3YlUWeiBbI5Zkfaw4WYnGJkgvVR4IknWicKxRkjo&e= > is coming off back-to-back strong outings, allowing a combined four earned runs across 11 2/3 IP with 13 strikeouts vs. three walks against No. 23 Georgia and No. 2 Arkansas. Sproat has thrown five-plus innings with three earned runs or fewer in five of seven weekend starts this year, with his best outing at now-No. 2 Miami (W, 6.1 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 8 K) earning him SEC Pitcher of the Week honors. Sproat has thrown 216 pitches (107, 109) over his last two starts.

2-TO-4 HAPPY HOUR
The trio of J. Fabian (second), outfielder Sterlin Thompson<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__floridagators.com_roster.aspx-3Frp-5Fid-3D15108&d=DwIF-g&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=IdZs6gt4INqHOq4-M0thWoIFsOKwJXBfYmsh9S4m2m0r0dkmoEIZ7K8nGojFkLcz&s=vLqdgUy_kGrRl2f-dE-QW9P1Y1cnlsqNnm9FwuJZmN4&e= > (third) and Langford (fourth) has recorded an RBI in 29 of 33 games this year while picking up hits in 32 of 33 games. Those three hitters have batted two-three-four in Florida’s lineup in 32 of 33 games this year – in the only other instance, they batted one-two-three in the starting lineup.

HISTORIC HOME RUN PACE
Florida ranks fifth in the nation with 61 home runs. The Gators are on pace to hit 103 home runs in the regular season this year, which would mark the program’s third-highest total ever, as well as the most under O’Sullivan (2018 – 100) and Florida’s top total since 2002 (111). Catcher/designated hitter Mac Guscette<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__floridagators.com_roster.aspx-3Frp-5Fid-3D15095&d=DwIF-g&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=IdZs6gt4INqHOq4-M0thWoIFsOKwJXBfYmsh9S4m2m0r0dkmoEIZ7K8nGojFkLcz&s=XfLZy9xCZ1Fd9ETBbbGMJN_M-OjpgAYp8_Y4Yf2S01E&e= > hit the Gators’ 50th home run on March 31, 2022 at No. 23 Georgia in the team’s 26th game of the season. In 2021, first baseman/designated hitter Kris Armstrong<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__floridagators.com_roster.aspx-3Frp-5Fid-3D15090&d=DwIF-g&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=IdZs6gt4INqHOq4-M0thWoIFsOKwJXBfYmsh9S4m2m0r0dkmoEIZ7K8nGojFkLcz&s=BO8pUmgNzabQA9aCsjboREUUD_ua8fCrTRGnHvw0XrQ&e= > hit the Gators’ 50th homer in the 41st game of the season on April 30, 2021 off of No. 2 Vanderbilt’s Kumar Rocker. Florida recorded its 40th home run of the season in just their 20th game on March 20 at Alabama, whereas last year, Florida’s 40th home run occurred in the team’s 33rd game – on April 11 at Tennessee.

JUDDY JACKS
After becoming the fifth player in program history to eclipse 20 home runs in a season in 2021, J. Fabian is not only leading the SEC with 13 homers, but is also tied for third in the conference with 30 walks (T-21st nationally) – while drawing more free passes than strikeouts (28). Fabian recorded his seventh career multi-homer game on March 22 vs. Bethune-Cookman and now sits at 45 career home runs, which ranks sixth all-time at Florida. The Ocala, Fla. native’s next home run milestone will come at 47 homers, where Gator great Mike Zunino sits in fifth.

MARCH ON, JUD
During the month of March, Fabian led the SEC in total bases (54), slugging (.857), walks (22) and home runs (10).

STATE OF THE DEFENSE
With 25 errors in 1,202 defensive chances, Florida ranks 17th nationally with a .979 fielding percentage. Two of the Gators’ starting outfielders – J. Fabian and Langford – have yet to make an error across a combined 118 defensive chances on the season. J. Fabian (center), Langford (left) and Thompson (right) have started all 33 games for Florida and have just one error all season long.

SULLY WINS 600TH
With a 13-6 victory to clinch the series over Alabama on March 19, O’Sullivan won his 600th game as Florida head coach – on the same day Georgia head coach Scott Stricklin<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__floridagators.com_staff.aspx-3Fstaff-3D487&d=DwIF-g&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=IdZs6gt4INqHOq4-M0thWoIFsOKwJXBfYmsh9S4m2m0r0dkmoEIZ7K8nGojFkLcz&s=i0XBgC4grXdAyf5XNOw66xRHoCzhVK3zcf3HDSsWXvo&e= > accomplished the feat. 2022 represents O’Sullivan’s 15th season as the head coach at Florida. During that time, O’Sullivan owns a 606-290 (.676) record, passing the legendary Dave Fuller (556-354-6) for the most wins in program history on March 9, 2021. O’Sullivan’s .676 winning percentage ranks third among all active Division I head coaches, while Florida’s .616 clip in SEC play since 2008 stands as the top mark in the conference.

FRESHMAN FLIES
From Feb. 26 to March 2, a Florida freshman hit his first-career homer in four-straight games: Corey Robinson<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__floridagators.com_roster.aspx-3Frp-5Fid-3D15110&d=DwIF-g&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=IdZs6gt4INqHOq4-M0thWoIFsOKwJXBfYmsh9S4m2m0r0dkmoEIZ7K8nGojFkLcz&s=RZirbnOI30siUQXmKDpMCEegRCa_6YH5HAlWKXJICUc&e= > (March 2), Deric Fabian<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__floridagators.com_roster.aspx-3Frp-5Fid-3D15119&d=DwIF-g&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=IdZs6gt4INqHOq4-M0thWoIFsOKwJXBfYmsh9S4m2m0r0dkmoEIZ7K8nGojFkLcz&s=Nw3TtTmBmewLds9ihDamTQcLXPtio6N7ddythA9qRls&e= > (March 1), Ty Evans<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__floridagators.com_roster.aspx-3Frp-5Fid-3D15111&d=DwIF-g&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=IdZs6gt4INqHOq4-M0thWoIFsOKwJXBfYmsh9S4m2m0r0dkmoEIZ7K8nGojFkLcz&s=9AB_BlGcwRoQXb_80QQf4jQ4hL-XPDILvSU1AdceLto&e= > (Feb. 27) and Rene Lastres<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__floridagators.com_roster.aspx-3Frp-5Fid-3D15115&d=DwIF-g&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=IdZs6gt4INqHOq4-M0thWoIFsOKwJXBfYmsh9S4m2m0r0dkmoEIZ7K8nGojFkLcz&s=tCHqT8mKP663gES_EZfyNPJZ0AG9IXljhS-RA-pPslk&e= > (Feb. 26).

DRAFT BUZZ
After being selected 40th overall in last year’s draft, Fabian is again projected as Florida’s top prospect by MLB Pipeline, coming in as the No. 45 overall prospect for the 2022 MLB Draft. Barco follows closely behind at No. 54, while Thompson (No. 90) and Sproat (No. 98) fell just inside the top 100. The Gators’ middle infield duo of Colby Halter<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__floridagators.com_roster.aspx-3Frp-5Fid-3D15096&d=DwIF-g&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=IdZs6gt4INqHOq4-M0thWoIFsOKwJXBfYmsh9S4m2m0r0dkmoEIZ7K8nGojFkLcz&s=8ZoyDDuvhV62XcmmvrbRzhQvBdBGpzrA8JohlXQ0qEQ&e= > and Josh Rivera<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__floridagators.com_roster.aspx-3Frp-5Fid-3D15104&d=DwIF-g&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=IdZs6gt4INqHOq4-M0thWoIFsOKwJXBfYmsh9S4m2m0r0dkmoEIZ7K8nGojFkLcz&s=ZFPNXqVseU4ukVwDyPK-O0m4oEaqw3B_ttDHMVtPGTE&e= > recently received draft buzz as well, with D1baseball ranking the former as the No. 60 college prospect and the latter sitting at No. 78. All six of the aforementioned players were ranked as top-30 prospects in the SEC by D1Baseball, in addition to right-hander Nick Pogue<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__floridagators.com_roster.aspx-3Frp-5Fid-3D15102&d=DwIF-g&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=IdZs6gt4INqHOq4-M0thWoIFsOKwJXBfYmsh9S4m2m0r0dkmoEIZ7K8nGojFkLcz&s=nEe5rj7z8s4Zbc_hwkkaafCKyzpeJ2sqkr7SrsxtlwE&e= >, who was tabbed the conference’s No. 50 prospect.

Recently updated on March 14, Florida placed five players on Baseball America’s top-200 draft prospects list: Barco (No. 23), Fabian (No. 33), Thompson (No. 53), Sproat (No. 96), Halter (No. 198).

ON DECK
The Gators return to Gainesville for an eight-game homestand, beginning with a midweek tilt against Stetson on Tuesday at 6 p.m. Next weekend, No. 1 Tennessee comes to town for a three-game series at Florida Ballpark, spanning from Friday, April 22 to Sunday, April 24. All four games next week will stream live on SEC Network+.

Follow the Gators
#GoGators
Twitter<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__twitter.com_GatorsBB&d=DwIF-g&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=IdZs6gt4INqHOq4-M0thWoIFsOKwJXBfYmsh9S4m2m0r0dkmoEIZ7K8nGojFkLcz&s=fHHmYYUuQLcQM0PlhIYQ1mrVofzvgL7Ahiin9pbrW2A&e= >
Instagram<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__www.instagram.com_gatorsbb_-3Fhl-3Den&d=DwIF-g&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=IdZs6gt4INqHOq4-M0thWoIFsOKwJXBfYmsh9S4m2m0r0dkmoEIZ7K8nGojFkLcz&s=aOm5LJOfJ3kVv-9nXKw8XX7T9UQCMCCDqELeaWZASLM&e= >
Facebook<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__www.facebook.com_GatorsBB_&d=DwIF-g&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=IdZs6gt4INqHOq4-M0thWoIFsOKwJXBfYmsh9S4m2m0r0dkmoEIZ7K8nGojFkLcz&s=M2n_NmNzPlWJ9MZ4tBPncpTTzYe9vjcvEw1RHWAkSPQ&e= >

###