Major preseason baseball polls have Gators 1-2-3
Friday, January 28, 2011 | Baseball, Men's Tennis, Scott Carter
Florida baseball coach Kevin O'Sullivan uses prudence when discussing the high expectations his Gators face when they open the season Feb. 18 at home against USF.
The pollsters take a different approach. They really like the Gators. A lot.
The final major preseason polls were released on Thursday and for the first time in school history, the Gators will open the season ranked No. 1 in Baseball America's Top 25.
Baseball America says Florida “is so absurdly deep on the mound that a junior who won 11 games last year (Alex Panteliodis) is battling for a weekend rotation.”
In its final assessment, the magazine writes that “Florida has no discernable weakness and enters the season a strong bet to win its first national title.''
O'Sullivan likes his team, too, but he knows preseason rankings won't mean much after the first pitch is thrown. Still, the Gators are coming off a 47-17 season and a trip to the College World Series and the program should certainly be in contention for a postseason run if all the pieces fit.
Click here to read a question-and-answer session GatorZone.com did with O'Sullivan earlier this month.
To check out Baseball America's Top 25 and to read in-depth previews of each team, click on this link.
Meanwhile, the Gators check in at No. 3 in the USA Today/ESPN Coaches Poll released late Thursday afternoon. UCLA is No. 1 and TCU No. 2.
Here is what USA Today wrote:
After sweeping five postseason games to reach the College World Series, Florida went 0-2 in Omaha. With eight starters back along with the entire weekend pitching rotation, the Gators could turn that around. 3B Austin Maddox (.333, 17 HR, 72 RBI) keys a veteran lineup that also returns RF Preston Tucker (.331, 11, 49). LHs Brian Johnson and Alex Panteliodis teamed with RH Hudson Randall for 25 wins in 47 starts last season. Stephen Rodriguez (2-0, 2.57 ERA) steps into the closer role. Freshman RH Karsten Whitson, the ninth overall pick in last year's major league draft, could crack the rotation quickly.
Click here for USA Today's capsules on each team, and click here for the complete USA Today/ESPN Top 25.
Finally, Collegiate Baseball Newspaper, the first of the three major polls to come out, ranks the Gators No. 2 in its preseason poll behind TCU.
To check out CBN's Top 25, click here (poll is listed at bottom of the story).
