GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Former Florida Gators ace Brandon Sproat is set to make his Major League Baseball debut this weekend, as the New York Mets selected his contract from Triple-A Syracuse to start on Sunday against the Reds in Cincinnati, Ohio.
When Sproat delivers his first pitch on Sunday, he will become the 87th Gator to appear in the MLB including the 35th player of the Kevin O'Sullivan era to reach The Show. In all, a nation-leading 39 Gators have made MLB debuts since 2008.
First pitch of Sunday's matinee matchup in Cincinnati is scheduled for 1:40 p.m. ET at Great American Ballpark.
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As the second Florida player to earn a big-league promotion this season, Sproat joins former UF teammate
Jac Caglianone in the MLB, who debuted with the Kansas City Royals on June 3, 2025.
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After getting off to a slow start to the campaign, Sproat has been on a tear with Triple-A Syracuse across the latter half of the summer. Earning International League Pitcher of the Month honors in July, Sproat fired 27 innings across five starts while allowing just two earned runs on 14 hits and eight walks for a 0.67 ERA and 0.81 WHIP. The Pace, Fla. native racked up 33 strikeouts in that span, equating to 11.0 per nine innings. Sproat lasted at least five frames in all five starts in July while completing seven innings on one occasion.
Sproat followed with a strong August, producing three quality starts in five outings while working to a 31-to-10 strikeout to walk ratio and .184 batting average against in 26 frames. In his final Triple-A start, he dominated over seven shutout, three-hit innings backed by nine strikeouts and two walks. That effort proved to be enough for the Mets, as the organization elected to promote him to the big-league club less than one week later.
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On the heels of a dazzling second half, Sproat commands a 4.24 ERA, 1.24 WHIP and 113-to-53Â strikeout-to-walk ratio across 121Â innings pitched at Triple-A Syracuse this season. The one-time All-SEC hurler is currently ranked as the No. 5 prospect in the Mets organization.
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As the 56th overall pick in the second round of the 2023 MLB Draft, Sproat pitched four seasons in Orange & Blue before beginning his professional journey. He served as the Friday night starter for the winningest team in program history in 2023 (54-17) as the Gators reached the College World Series Finals and claimed an SEC Championship. Sproat wrapped up his UF career with a 19-8 record across 56 appearances (37 starts), 4.27 ERA, .242 batting average against and 242 strikeouts in 223 2/3 innings.
Below is a complete list of Gators to debut in the MLB under O'Sullivan.
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| MLB Players Under O'Sullivan |
|
Player |
Drafted (Round) |
MLB Debut |
Team |
| 1 |
Nick Maronde |
2011 (3rd) |
September 2, 2012 |
Los Angeles Angels |
| 2 |
Paco Rodriguez |
2012 (2nd) |
September 9, 2012 |
Los Angeles Dodgers |
| 3 |
Mike Zunino |
2012 (1st - 3rd overall) |
June 12, 2013 |
Seattle Mariners |
| 4 |
Kevin Chapman |
2010 (4th) |
August 9, 2013 |
Houston Astros |
| 5 |
Matt den Dekker |
2010 (5th) |
August 29, 2013 |
New York Mets |
| 6 |
Anthony DeSclafani |
2011 (6th) |
May 14, 2014 |
Miami Marlins |
| 7 |
Cole Figueroa |
2008 (6th) |
May 16, 2014 |
Tampa Bay Rays |
| 8 |
Preston Tucker |
2012 (7th) |
May 7, 2015 |
Houston Astros |
| 9 |
Brian Johnson |
2012 (1st - 31st overall) |
July 21, 2015 |
Boston Red Sox |
| 10 |
Nolan Fontana |
2012 (2nd) |
May 22, 2017 |
Los Angeles Angels |
| 11 |
Austin Maddox |
2012 (3rd) |
June 17, 2017 |
Boston Red Sox |
| 12 |
Harrison Bader |
2015 (3rd) |
July 25, 2017 |
St. Louis Cardinals |
| 13 |
Bobby Poyner |
2015 (14th) |
March 31, 2018 |
Boston Red Sox |
| 14 |
Justin Shafer |
2014 (8th) |
August 19, 2018 |
Toronto Blue Jays |
| 15 |
Eric Hanhold |
2015 (6th) |
September 4, 2018 |
New York Mets |
| 16 |
Richie Martin |
2015 (1st - 20th overall) |
March 28, 2019 |
Baltimore Orioles |
| 17 |
Pete Alonso |
2016 (2nd) |
March 28, 2019 |
New York Mets |
| 18 |
Shaun Anderson |
2016 (3rd) |
May 15, 2019 |
San Francisco Giants |
| 19 |
A.J. Puk |
2016 (1st - 6th overall) |
August 21, 2019 |
Oakland Athletics |
| 20 |
Brady Singer |
2018 (1st - 18th overall) |
July 25, 2020 |
Kansas City Royals |
| 21 |
Dane Dunning |
2016 (1st - 29th overall) |
August 19, 2020 |
Chicago White Sox |
| 22 |
Jonathan India |
2018 (1st - 5th overall) |
Thursday, April 1, 2021 |
Cincinnati Reds |
| 23 |
Jackson Kowar |
2018 (1st - 33rd overall) |
Monday, June 7, 2021 |
Kansas City Royals |
| 24 |
Taylor Gushue |
2014 (4th) |
Wednesday, June 30, 2021 |
Chicago Cubs |
| 25 |
Kirby Snead |
2016 (10th) |
Wednesday, July 28, 2021 |
Toronto Blue Jays |
| 26 |
Mark Kolozsvary |
2017 (7th) |
Wednesday, April 20, 2022 |
Cincinnati Reds |
| 27 |
Alex Faedo |
2017 (1st - 18th overall) |
Wednesday, May 4, 2022 |
Detroit Tigers |
| 28 |
Danny Young |
2015 (8th) |
Monday, May 9, 2022 |
Seattle Mariners |
| 29 |
Dalton Guthrie |
2017 (6th) |
Tuesday, Sept. 6, 2022 |
Philadelphia Phillies |
| 30 |
Jacob Young |
2021 (7th) |
Saturday, Aug. 26, 2023 |
Washington Nationals |
| 31 |
Wyatt Langford |
2023 (1st - 4th overall) |
Thursday, Mar. 28, 2024 |
Texas Rangers |
| 32 |
Christian Scott |
2021 (5th) |
Saturday, May. 4, 2024 |
New York Mets |
| 33 |
Hurston Waldrep |
2023 (1st - 24th overall) |
Sunday, June 9, 2024 |
Atlanta Braves |
| 34 |
Jac Caglianone |
2024 (1st - 6th overall) |
Tuesday, June 3, 2025 |
Kansas City Royals |
| 35 |
Brandon Sproat |
2023 (2nd) |
Sunday, September 7, 2025 |
New York Mets |
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