Matt LaPorta Steps to Plate as Homecoming Mr. Two Bits
Tuesday, November 3, 2015 | Baseball
GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- When Matt LaPorta answered his cell phone Monday night, he was pulling into the Citrus Park Mall in Tampa.
His wife told him to just throw on a pair of khakis to make it work, but LaPorta, one of the greatest baseball players in University of Florida history, figured one of the most famous traditions in Gators' history deserved more effort.
“I have to pay him homage,” LaPorta said. “I have to go with the whole ensemble.”
LaPorta, the only UF player ever to be named as a two-time Southeastern Conference Player of the Year, will do the honorary Mr. Two Bits thing Saturday when the No. 11 Gators (7-1, 5-1) take on Vanderbilt (3-5, 1-3) for Homecoming, with the SEC Eastern Division crown there for the taking.
He jumped at the chance to be George Edmondson for a day.
“I couldn't believe it when they asked me,” LaPorta said. “I was like, 'Oh man! Are you serious?' I mean, my heart was starting to race a little bit. I'm not used to playing in front of 90,000 screaming Gator fans.”
But, he did quite nicely in front of rabid crowds at McKethan Stadium back in the day.
LaPorta, out of Port Charlotte, Fla., hit .323 with a program-record 74 homers during his four-year UF career, including 26 homers as a sophomore in '05 and a .402 average as a senior in '07, after which the Milwaukee Brewers made him the No. 7 overall pick in the MLB Draft. A year later, LaPorta was traded to the Cleveland Indians as part of the deal for CC Sabathia. While in Cleveland, he averaged .238, with 31 homers and 120 RBI through 2012. He retired from baseball in '14 following his release by the Baltimore Orioles.
Now 30, LaPorta has settled in Tampa with his wife, the former Dara Altman (an All-American pole vaulter at UF), and their three kids (with another on the way). He's a mortgage banker with SunTrust.
But Saturday -- on the same day the 2015 SEC Tournament Champion baseball squad will be honored for their College World Series run and third-place finish at Omaha -- LaPorta will revisit his Orange and Blue roots.
“The Gators are definitely still in me,” said LaPorta, who arrived at UF in '03 with the athletic class that also featured Chris Leak and Lee Humphrey. “We've been fired up about the football team this season. I know we've had a few years that have been tough to watch, but this is a fun team that's surprising a lot of people. I'm excited about this year and what the future is going to be like.”
