Florida Baseball Weekly Report ? March 29, 2015
Monday, March 30, 2015 | Baseball
Florida Baseball Weekly Report – March 29, 2015
(Games from March 23-29)
Overall Record: 23-6 (19-3 at home, 3-3 on road, 1-0 at neutral site)
SEC Record: 5-4 (4-2 home, 1-2 on road)
Record Last Week: 3-1 (2-1 at home, 1-0 on road)
Streak: Won 2
Last Week's Results (3-1):
Tuesday, March 24 – Won at Stetson, 9-6
Friday, March 27 – Game 1 of doubleheader – Lost to Alabama, 12-9 (10 innings)
Friday, March 27 – Game 2 of doubleheader – Defeated Alabama, 8-1
Saturday, March 28 – Defeated Alabama, 7-4
This Week's Schedule (All Times Eastern)
Tuesday, March 31 – vs. No. 9 Florida State (22-7/9-3 ACC), The Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville, 6 p.m.
Friday, April 3 – at No. 23 Missouri (20-9/6-3 SEC), Taylor Stadium, 7 p.m. (SEC Network+)
Saturday, April 4 – at No. 23 Missouri (20-9/6-3 SEC), Taylor Stadium, 3 p.m. (SEC Network+)
Sunday, April 5 – at No. 23 Missouri (20-9/6-3 SEC), Taylor Stadium, 2 p.m. (SEC Network+)
Team Notes
Florida (23-6/5-4 SEC) went 3-1 last week, downing Stetson on the road Tuesday night, 9-6, and taking two of the three games from Western Division rival Alabama in Gainesville (9-12 (10), 8-1, 7-4)…The Gators will be away from the friendly confines of McKethan Stadium, where they are 19-3 this year, for the next four games…UF meets No. 9 Florida State (22-7/9-3 ACC) in the second of the Sunshine State rivals' three encounters on Tuesday night at The Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville and will then travel to the Show-Me State for a weekend set with No. 23 Missouri (20-9/6-3 SEC)…Florida is hitting .307 overall with 63 doubles, 25 homers and 10 triples, while its team earned run average is 3.06 and its fielding percentage is .982…Senior third baseman Josh Tobias paces the Orange and Blue with a .378 batting average and has registered a perfect fielding percentage on the hot corner…Junior left fielder Harrison Bader (.367) paces the Gators in RBI (33), walks (21), homers (8) and slugging percentage, while freshman second baseman Dalton Guthrie (.331) leads the squad in hits (42), runs (28) and doubles (11)…Freshman catcher/designated hitter Mike Rivera (.317) boasts an eight-game hitting streak in which he is 15-for-32 (.469) with 11 RBI and he has at least one RBI in eight consecutive outings…The Gator offense batted .358 (38-for-106) in the series with the Crimson Tide, led by sophomore right fielder Ryan Larson (.344, 16 runs, 15 RBI) going 6-for-12 (.500) with four RBI and a pair of doubles and Rivera batting .417 (5-for-12) with four RBI…Sophomore center fielder Buddy Reed (.302, 24 RBI, 10 SB) snapped a 4-4 tie with a two-run, bases-loaded single in the eighth inning and Rivera added an RBI single in the frame as UF captured the rubber game of its weekend series with Alabama, 7-4, on a sun-splashed Saturday afternoon….The Gators had evened the game in the seventh inning on a two-out solo homer by freshman Jeremy Vasquez (.356, five RBI)…Making his first relief appearance of the season, sophomore LHP A.J. Puk (5-2, 4.20) registered five strikeouts and permitted one hit over 3.1 scoreless innings to collect the Gators' seventh come-from-behind victory of the campaign…Florida used a five-run first inning and the first career complete game from sophomore right-hander Logan Shore (4-2, 1.89) to collect an 8-1 victory over Alabama and forge a split of Friday's doubleheader…Six different players turned in multiple-hit efforts for the Orange and Blue, while Shore also matched his career high of eight strikeouts…After dropping an extra-inning affair in the opener, Florida used seven consecutive hits to grab a 5-0 lead in the first inning…Junior shortstop Richie Martin (.296, 30 runs, 16 RBI) had a one-out single, stole second and moved to third on a base-hit by Bader before scoring on an infield single by Tobias(2-for-5)…After a base-hit into left field by Reed (2-for-5) loaded the bases, freshman JJ Schwarz (.305, 27 RBI) delivered a two-run double and Rivera (2-for-4) and Vasquez (2-for-4) followed with back-to-back RBI singles…Reed roped a two-out RBI single into right field in the fourth stanza to bring home Guthrie for a 7-1 cushion and Vasquez launched his first career homer to right field with two down in the fifth inning to finalize the scoring…Alabama scored three times in the 10th inning to post a 12-9 victory on Friday afternoon in the opener of the day/night doubleheader…The Crimson Tide overcame a 4-1 deficit to take a 9-4 lead and withstood three runs in the seventh and two in eighth by the hosts to end a seven-game losing streak to the Gators…The contest was the first extra-inning game for both Alabama and Florida…Guthrie had his team-leading 13th multiple-hit game for the Gators and was 4-for-5 with two runs…Junior RHP Aaron Rhodes (0-0, 3.86) made his first start of the season and drew his first starting assignment since May 3, 2014, at Alabama…Riverabelted his second round-tripper of the year in the fourth inning and Bader connected on his eighth homer of the year with Guthrie aboard in the seventh inning…Reed's career-best 13-game hitting streak ended with an 0-for-5 performance.
Top Performers Last Week
Harrison Bader, Junior, Outfielder, 6-0, 190, Bronxville, NY
*Went 6-for-15 (.400), scored four runs, totaled four RBI and drew three walks last week
*Batted .364 (4-for-11) in the series victory over Alabama
*Turned in a 3-for-5 effort in the first meeting with the Crimson Tide, highlighted by his team-best eighth homer
*Tied the game in the eighth with an RBI single at Stetson after a run-scoring single in the second inning
*Is hitting .367 and paces Florida in RBI (33), extra-base hits (16), homers (8) and slugging percentage (.733)
Alex Faedo, Freshman, Right-Hander, 6-4, 220, Tampa, FL
*Fired five innings of one-run ball at Stetson in his second career start
*Totaled three strikeouts, permitted two hits and gave up one run to the Hatters but was not involved in the decision
*Is 1-0 with a team-low 1.59 ERA in eight appearances, with 18 strikeouts in 17 innings
Richie Martin, Junior, Shortstop, 6-0, 185, Brandon, FL
*Hit .438 (7-for-16) and led the Gators with six runs
*Totaled three RBI and 3-for-3 on the basepaths
*Batted .333 (4-for-12) over the weekend
*Opened the scoring on Sunday with a solo homer in the fourth inning and scored twice
*Drove in a pair of runs in the first meeting with Alabama on an RBI single in the first inning and a sacrifice fly in the eighth inning
*Went 3-for-4 and scored three runs in the come-from-behind win at Stetson
*Has a.296 clip with 30 runs, 16 RBI, 16 walks and 10 stolen bases
A.J. Puk, Sophomore, Left-Hander, 6-7, 225, Cedar Rapids, IA
*Fired 3.1 scoreless innings in his first relief appearance of the season and earned the series-clinching win over Alabama
*Collected five strikeouts and allowed just one hit
*Improved to 5-2 on the season and his five victories lead the Orange and Blue
Ryan Larson, Sophomore, Right Fielder, 6-0, 185, Orlando, FL
*Turned in a .400 (6-for-15) average during Florida's 3-1 week
*Went a team-best 6-for-12 (.500) with four RBI, two doubles and two runs as the Gators took two of three games from Alabama
*Delivered a two-run single in the fifth inning on Saturday
*Was 5-for-9 in Friday's doubleheader, with two doubles and two RBI
*Hitting .344 with 16 runs and 15 RBI overall and has a .320 average in SEC play
Mike Rivera, Freshman, Catcher/Designated Hitter, 5-10, 205, Venice, FL
*Batted .467 (7-for-15) last week as the Gators claimed three of four contests and posted a series victory over Alabama
*Tied for the team lead by driving in five runs, scored three times and drew a pair of walks
*Hit .417 (5-for-12) against Alabama and tallied an RBI in each game
*Started the series with the Tide by going 2-for-5 with a two-run homer and scored twice
*Helped the Gators forge a split of Friday's doubleheader by going 2-for-4 with an RBI single in the nightcap
*Went 1-for-3 with an insurance run-scoring single during UF's three-run eighth inning that paved the way for a 7-4 triumph in Saturday's rubber game
*Currently boasts a career-high eight-game hitting streak and has at least one RBI in his last eight games
*Batting .317 overall with 23 RBI and is at .333 through three SEC series
Logan Shore, Sophomore, Right-Hander, 6-2, 215, Coon Rapids, MN
*Tossed the first career complete game of his career in the second game of Friday's doubleheader with Alabama to even the series
*The Gators used eight pitchers in the opener so Shore's effort preserved the bullpen for Saturday's finale
*Matched his career high of eight strikeouts in going the distance during the 8-1 triumph
*The right-hander scattered 10 hits, eight of which were singles, and yielded one run
*Shore is 4-2 on the season with a 1.89 ERA and has registered 27 strikeouts in 38 innings
Josh Tobias, Senior, Third Base, 5-10, 205, Greensboro, NC
*Batted .389 (7-for-18) with four runs and four RBI as the Gators claimed three of their four games last week
*Went 4-for-13 (.308) to help Florida claim the series over Alabama
*Had three multiple-hit outings last week
*Belted a two-run homer in the eighth inning that lifted UF past Stetson last Tuesday night
*Leads Florida with a.378 overall average and is at .320 in SEC action
Jeremy Vasquez, Freshman, First Base, 5-11, 205, Palm City, FL
*Hit .333 (5-for-15) last week and .300 (3-for-10) in the series with Alabama
*Connected on the first two homers of his collegiate career against the Crimson Tide
*Tied Saturday's game at 4-4 with a two-out solo homer in the seventh inning
*Came through with an RBI single in the first inning and jacked a solo shot in the fifth inning of Friday's game-two victory
*Had a couple of hits in the win at Stetson
*Has a .356 batting average in 13 games, with a .333 average in conference games
