Ty Evans suffers broken wrist in win over Kentucky
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Ty Evans took off in a full sprint after a foul ball fading towards the right field berm. The right fielder nearly made the catch but crashed into the wall after a full sprint sliding attempt at a spectacular catch, resulting in a broken wrist, Florida manager Kevin O’Sullivan confirmed after the game.
“Unfortunately, I think his wrist is broken. Obviously that’s going to take some time. That’s unfortunate. I quite didn’t know the extent of it when we ran out there but you could tell he was in pain. That’s obviously really unfortunate.”
Following a tremendous College World Series where he paced the Gators with a . 400 batting average (8-for-20), five home runs, and nine RBI, Evans has been a mainstay in the Gators’ lineup this season. He has played in and started 49 of the Gators’ 50 games this season. Evans is second on the team — only behind Jac Caglianone — in batting (.316) and hits (61). He’s also been a leader for the Gators on and off the field.
“That’s like a dagger to the heart,” senior third baseman Dale Thomas said after the game. He’s one of my best friends. I love that kid to death. He’s a competitor. He’s a winner and he goes out there and gives everything for the team. There’s going to need to be some guys that step up. He’s one of the leaders on the team. We just got to get his back and try to dedicate everything for him.”
Evans is an MLB Draft prospect who will be selected this July. He’s expected to be taken high enough that he would sign, making this a potentially tough way to end a very good career with the Gators.
Replacing Ty Evans
This weekend the Gators made a move in the outfield to put true freshman Hayden Yost in center field, sliding Tyler Shelnut back from third base to left. That made room for Dale Thomas in the lineup and the senior has made the most of his opportunity going 5-7 with three RBI.
“I mean, the bottom line is we haven’t been getting a whole lot of offensive production in center field and especially in conference games at home. So, it was really just a matter of swapping out two hitters to hit nine-hole. So, maybe Dale can have some good at bats, and he did today.”
Florida will likely continue to platoon both Michael Robertson and Jaylen Guy in center field with Yost playing right field and Shelnut in left.
