O'Day Becomes 50th Gator To Reach Major Leagues
Tuesday, April 1, 2008 | Baseball
Former Gator pitcher Darren O'Day made his Major League debut on Monday night for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim against the Minnesota Twins at the Metrodome in Minneapolis. Sporting the No. 53 jersey, the right-hander was summoned from the bullpen in the eighth inning with the Angels trailing, 3-2. O'Day retired the first batter he faced, 2006 American League Most Valuable Player Justin Morneau, and later worked out of a bases-loaded, one-out jam. He allowed two hits with a strikeout and an intentional walk but was not involved in the decision as the Angels fell short by a run on Opening Night.
O'Day completed his career at Florida ranked second in appearances (117), fourth in saves (20), tied for seventh in victories (23) and tied for ninth in earned run average (3.14). Not only did he pace the team in lowest ERA three-consecutive seasons, O'Day was the Orange and Blue's leader in saves during two of his last three campaigns. A finalist for the prestigious H. Boyd McWhorter SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year Award in 2006, he was also a member of the SEC Good Works Team and was chosen to the league's Academic Honor Roll on three occasions.
In addition, O'Day was named to the 2006 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America University Division Baseball team as chosen by members of CoSIDA (College Sports Information Directors of America). A third-team honoree, the Jacksonville native became the fourth Gator to earn Academic All-America acclaim, joining Fred Bretz (1970), Ray Hull (1972) and David Eckstein (1996, 1997). O'Day was also the initial Florida baseball player to earn Academic All-District III recognition three years in a row.
Besides O'Day, there are seven players with UF ties in the Big Leagues: David Eckstein (Toronto Blue Jays), Mark Ellis (Oakland A's), Josh Fogg (Cincinnati Reds), Ryan Raburn (Detroit Tigers), David Ross (Cincinnati Reds, currently on 15-day disabled list), Ryan Shealy (Kansas City Royals' 40-man roster) and Brad Wilkerson (Seattle Mariners).
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