Hurston Waldrep is the 85th Gator to reach the MLB and the 33rd under Kevin O’Sullivan.
CLEMSON, S.C. – All-American Florida hurler Hurston Waldrep<https://floridagators.com/sports/baseball/roster/hurston-waldrep/15517> is scheduled to make his Major League Baseball debut on Sunday afternoon, earning the starting nod for the Atlanta Braves at the Washington Nationals.
When Waldrep takes the hill in D.C., he will promptly become the 85th Florida Gator to play in the MLB. The fire-balling right-hander is the 33rd player of the Kevin O’Sullivan<https://floridagators.com/sports/baseball/roster/coaches/kevin-o-sullivan/1752> era to reach The Show, signifying the top total in the country since 2008. Waldrep is the third Gator to make it to the Bigs this season and the first since right-hander Christian Scott with the New York Mets on May 4.
After transferring to Florida from Southern Miss and pitching one season in Orange & Blue, Waldrep was drafted with the 24th overall pick in the first round of the 2023 MLB Draft by the Braves. In his first half-season of pro ball, the Thomasville, Ga. native advanced all the way from Single-A to Triple-A and finished with a 1.53 ERA in 29 1/3 innings.
Opening the 2024 campaign at Double-A Mississippi, Waldrep made nine starts before being promoted to Triple-A Gwinnett for a one-start cameo. He totaled 55 1/3 frames of 3.09 ERA ball across the two levels while producing a 1.36 WHIP and 9.6 strikeouts per nine.
In his lone season as a Gator, Waldrep played a vital role in propelling Florida to the 2023 College World Series Finals and an SEC Title. He earned Second Team All-America honors (D1Baseball) and set the Florida program record for strikeouts per nine (13.8) in a career after making 19 starts with a 10-3 record in 101 2/3 innings. Waldrep posted a 4.16 ERA and .228 batting average against to go along with 156 strikeouts – the second-highest, single-season total in team history.
Below is a complete list of Gators to debut in the MLB under O’Sullivan.
MLB Players Under O’Sullivan
Player Drafted (Round) MLB Debut Team
1 Nick Maronde 2011 (3rd) September 2, 2012 Los Angeles Angels
2 Paco Rodriguez 2012 (2nd) September 9, 2012 Los Angeles Dodgers
3 Mike Zunino 2012 (1st – 3rd overall) June 12, 2013 Seattle Mariners
4 Kevin Chapman 2010 (4th) August 9, 2013 Houston Astros
5 Matt den Dekker 2010 (5th) August 29, 2013 New York Mets
6 Anthony DeSclafani 2011 (6th) May 14, 2014 Miami Marlins
7 Cole Figueroa 2008 (6th) May 16, 2014 Tampa Bay Rays
8 Preston Tucker 2012 (7th) May 7, 2015 Houston Astros
9 Brian Johnson 2012 (1st – 31st overall) July 21, 2015 Boston Red Sox
10 Nolan Fontana 2012 (2nd) May 22, 2017 Los Angeles Angels
11 Austin Maddox 2012 (3rd) June 17, 2017 Boston Red Sox
12 Harrison Bader 2015 (3rd) July 25, 2017 St. Louis Cardinals
13 Bobby Poyner 2015 (14th) March 31, 2018 Boston Red Sox
14 Justin Shafer 2014 (8th) August 19, 2018 Toronto Blue Jays
15 Eric Hanhold 2015 (6th) September 4, 2018 New York Mets
16 Richie Martin 2015 (1st – 20th overall) March 28, 2019 Baltimore Orioles
17 Pete Alonso 2016 (2nd) March 28, 2019 New York Mets
18 Shaun Anderson 2016 (3rd) May 15, 2019 San Francisco Giants
19 A.J. Puk 2016 (1st – 6th overall) August 21, 2019 Oakland Athletics
20 Brady Singer 2018 (1st – 18th overall) July 25, 2020 Kansas City Royals
21 Dane Dunning 2016 (1st – 29th overall) August 19, 2020 Chicago White Sox
22 Jonathan India 2018 (1st – 5th overall) Thursday, April 1, 2021 Cincinnati Reds
23 Jackson Kowar 2018 (1st – 33rd overall) Monday, June 7, 2021 Kansas City Royals
24 Taylor Gushue 2014 (4th) Wednesday, June 30, 2021 Chicago Cubs
25 Kirby Snead 2016 (10th) Wednesday, July 28, 2021 Toronto Blue Jays
26 Mark Kolozsvary 2017 (7th) Wednesday, April 20, 2022 Cincinnati Reds
27 Alex Faedo 2017 (1st – 18th overall) Wednesday, May 4, 2022 Detroit Tigers
28 Danny Young 2015 (8th) Monday, May 9, 2022 Seattle Mariners
29 Dalton Guthrie 2017 (6th) Tuesday, Sept. 6, 2022 Philadelphia Phillies
30 Jacob Young 2021 (7th) Saturday, Aug. 26, 2023 Washington Nationals
31 Wyatt Langford<https://floridagators.com/sports/baseball/roster/wyatt-langford/15497> 2023 (1st – 4th overall) Thursday, Mar. 28, 2024 Texas Rangers
32 Christian Scott 2021 (5th) Saturday, May. 4, 2024 New York Mets
33 Hurston Waldrep<https://floridagators.com/sports/baseball/roster/hurston-waldrep/15517> 2023 (1st – 24th overall) Sunday, June 9, 2024 Atlanta Braves
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