GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Everywhere he turned Friday night, an old acquaintance seemed to appear from nowhere to say hello.
Joe Arnold was back home, a place he has rarely visited since his departure as Florida's head baseball coach in the summer of 1994.
The 68-year-old Arnold doesn't quite move around like he did during his 11 seasons at Florida, leading the Gators to the College World Series for the first time in 1988 and again three years later.
He walks with a limp -- a recent knee replacement is to blame -- and his vision isn't what it used to be.
So when the man in the Kentucky dugout kept waving at him as Arnold walked toward the mound to throw out the ceremonial first pitch before Friday night's game, Arnold was unable to identify him.
"I can't see across the field,'' Arnold said. "I don't know who that is."
After bouncing his toss home to Gators pitcher Aaron Rhodes crouched behind the plate, Arnold was greeted by Florida coach Kevin O'Sullivan and the rest of the team in his return to McKethan Stadium to be honored for his induction into the College Baseball Hall of Fame later this summer.
He then wanted to find out who that man in the Kentucky dugout was, so Arnold strolled over to uncover the mystery.
It was Rick Eckstein, in his first season as the Wildcats' hitting coach after spending the past seven years in the majors, six as hitting coach for the Washington Nationals and last season as a consultant for the Los Angeles Angels.
Eckstein greeted Arnold and then pointed to a man in the stands. It was his brother, David Eckstein, the former UF player and 2006 World Series Most Valuable Player.
Arnold beamed.
"Thanks for giving me a chance,'' David said.
"I didn't give you anything. You earned it,'' Arnold replied.
In Arnold's final season, the 5-foot-5, 160-pound Eckstein walked on and earned a roster spot as a reserve. And then in the postseason, Florida shortstop John Tamargo got hurt and Arnold was forced to shuffle his lineup.
Eckstein moved into a starting role and never gave it back, even after Andy Lopez replaced Arnold the next season. Eckstein went on to become a big-league All-Star and one of the most unlikely World Series MVPs in baseball history.
"I kept him on the club because he had the biggest heart of anybody on the team,'' Arnold said. "I love that kid, man. Unbelievable."
Over the past several weeks Arnold has talked to former colleagues, players and friends he hasn't heard from in years.
Former Gators pitcher John Burke called. So did Herbert Perry. He was joined at Friday's ceremony by former UF pitcher John Pricher, a standout on the 1991 team that finished 51-21 and made it all the way to Omaha.
Florida Athletic Director Jeremy Foley also called after learning the former UF skipper was going to be inducted into the College Baseball Hall of Fame.
Foley and Arnold reached a "mutual decision" in June 1994 that Arnold would resign after the Gators lost seven of their final 10 games that season while the Gators' two biggest rivals, Florida State and Miami, advanced to the CWS.
Despite a 434-244-2 record, seven trips to the NCAA Tournament, three SEC Tournament titles and two trips to Omaha, the Gators slumped late in the season in each of Arnold's final three years.
Nearly 21 years later Arnold and Foley had a different kind of conversation recently.
"When this whole thing was announced, Jeremy Foley called me," Arnold said. "He said, 'I want you to come up to a game and honor you in front of your fans and be a part of the University of Florida again.' That's a classy thing to do.
"They scrambled to get everything put together for me and I really, really appreciate it."
Arnold, who led Florida Southern to a pair of national titles that paved the way for his opportunity at Florida, had returned to Gainesville a few times since his days in the dugout at McKethan Stadium, the last time several years ago when he was a scout for the New York Yankees.
He had to find a seat in a stadium tunnel because so many old acquaintances kept coming up to say hello.
"I had 50 people around me and I felt like, 'I don't want to cause a scene here.' Plus I've got to work,'' he said. "I love to see them but I just felt a little self-conscious about it in the middle of a ballgame."
That was not the case Friday during Florida's 3-0 loss to the Wildcats.
Arnold and his wife Beverly got the red-carpet treatment and enjoyed every second.
Following his departure from UF Arnold worked for the Yankees and finished his coaching career with a stint at Polk State College in Lakeland, Fla., where Arnold has called home for many years.
Health issues forced him to retire five years ago. Arnold suffered severe headaches and vision problems. Doctors diagnosed him with pseudotumor cerebri, a condition that mimics a brain tumor and causes pressure on the optical nerve due to excess fluid on the brain.
Arnold had a shunt placed inside his skull, which drains the excess fluid into his stomach.
He spends most of his time now cooking, gardening, playing with his grandchildren and recently, playing nine holes of golf when he feels well enough.
Life is good.
"I'm coming along,'' he said. "I'm getting there but it's been slow."
As he stood in the press box of McKethan Stadium late Friday night, Arnold sounded content when reflecting on his UF career.
"We got the job done,'' he said. "They had never been to Omaha. That's what I wanted to do. We got there in '88 and '91. And now it's consistent."
The CWS is in June, the same month as the College Baseball Hall of Fame inducts its newest members.
The timing couldn't be better in the case of Joe Arnold.
