A primer for Florida-Vanderbilt matchup for SEC Tournament championship
Sunday, May 24, 2015 | Baseball, Scott Carter
GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- The Gators are back in the SEC Tournament championship game for the second consecutive season following an impressive come-from-behind victory over No. 1-ranked LSU on Saturday.
The Gators (43-16) face defending national champion Vanderbilt (42-18) today at 4:30 p.m. ET on the SEC Network. (Link to watch via WatchESPN).
If you prefer your baseball accompanied by nail-biting, Florida's 2-1 victory Saturday was your kind of game. LSU starter Alex Lange handcuffed Florida for most of the afternoon. It wasn't until Lange departed that Florida scratched through with a run in the eighth inning to tie the game.
A pair of costly base-running mistakes threatened to doom the Gators, but when freshman catcher Mike Rivera stepped to the plate in the top of the ninth, he rendered them a moot casualty with a solo homer that proved to be the game-winner.
Florida returns to the SEC Tournament title game a year after losing to LSU 2-0 in last year's final. The Gators are seeking their first tournament championship since 2011.
Meanwhile, Vanderbilt had no trouble disposing of Texas A&M, 12-3, setting up an all-SEC East championship game.
The Commodores last won the tournament in 2007 but have been regulars in the championship game under head coach Tim Corbin, who is 1-6 in SEC Tournament finals in his 12 seasons.
This is a rematch of one of the best regular-season series of the season. After losing 2-0 at Vanderbilt in the first game of the series two weeks ago, the Gators won the final two games, including a 9-7 comeback win in 10 innings in the series' finale.
With both of these teams expected to earn national seeds in the NCAA Tournament, today could be a primer for more postseason duels between these two. For now, let's take a look at the Florida-Vanderbilt matchup for the conference tournament title:
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PLAYER TO WATCH: Vanderbilt junior shortstop Dansby Swanson is projected as the No. 1 overall pick in the upcoming MLB amateur draft by ESPN.com, so each time Swanson steps to the plate or fields a ground ball today, scouts will be watching his every move.
Swanson has been red hot in Hoover, batting .412 (7-for-17) with four homers, two doubles and eight RBIs. When the Gators won two of three at Vanderbilt two weeks ago, the Gators kept Swanson in check until the final game of the series when he hit a pair of homers in Florida's 9-7 win. He was 3-for-12 overall.
On the season, the Most Outstanding Player in the 2014 College World Series is hitting .352 with 13 homers and 58 RBIs. Swanson is also a splendid defensive shortstop like LSU's Alex Bregman, who made a highlight-reel play in Saturday's game but ultimately watched Florida celebrate a dramatic win.
The Gators will take the same outcome today.
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PITCHING MATCHUP: O'Sullivan has tabbed junior right-hander Eric Hanhold (1-0, 3.91 ERA) to start today. Redshirt freshman lefty Ryan Johnson (5-0, 2.52) gets the start for Vanderbilt.
Hanhold has not pitched in the tournament. He made 13 appearances during the regular season and started three times. In 23 innings, Hanhold has allowed 26 hits, walked nine and struck out 22. If Hanhold struggles, expect O'Sullivan to quickly turn to the bullpen with plenty of fresh arms available in Danny Young, Bobby Poyner and Shaun Anderson.
The Gators did not face Johnson in Nashville two weeks ago. Johnson was a regular mid-week starter for the Commodores and pitched out of the bullpen. In 50 innings, he has allowed 43 hits, walked 12 and struck out 31.
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COACH CHATTER
Florida's Kevin O'Sullivan: “To win a game like that it should help us moving forward with our confidence and dealing with some adversity. LSU is a great ball club and there is a reason they are the No. 1 team in the country. It was a great ballgame all the way around by both clubs.”
Vanderbilt's Tim Corbin: “What is noticeable about Dansby and guys that play at that level is that they rise to another level when things matter. Not to minimize the level of his play throughout the season, but when something is on the line he thrives in it.”
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NOTABLES: Florida seeks to win the SEC Tournament championship for the seventh time (1981, '82, '84, '88, '91, 2011); Vanderbilt seeks its third title (1980, 2007) … Florida is 6-6 all-time in the championship game … Gators reliever Taylor Lewis has pitched 24 ⅔ scoreless innings over his last nine appearances, and has earned the victory in five of those outings … The Commodores have hit eight of the 17 home runs in this year's tournament … Vanderbilt's bullpen has pitched 14 ⅔ innings without allowing a run.
