Broken but not beaten, Deric Fabian stands tall in the box

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — The sounds of baseball in the fall are unmistakable. Metal cleats on the dugout floor, chatter from fielders, the pop of a mitt, and the ping from a bat as it connects with a baseball. The Florida Gators were well into fall baseball when Deric Fabian stepped into the box for what would be his last at-bat of camp.

The sophomore infielder was hitting nearly .500 in intrasquad scrimmages and 3-3 on the day. With confidence brewing, Fabian peeked at the third baseman who was playing back, and decided to try and steal a hit with a bunt. If you’ve been around baseball, the next sound you heard isn’t familiar but will haunt you. A sickening thud accompanied by gasps and curses from the Gators dugout.

“The third baseman was playing back so I thought I would drop one day and get an easy one,” Fabian told Gators Online in an exclusive interview. “I remember I turned to bunt, I don’t see the ball at all. The next thing I know I’m on my hands and knees, open my eyes and there’s a pool of blood in the batter’s box.” 

Fabian had turned to bunt but the 93-MPH offering from freshman pitcher Jake Clemente didn’t find his bat. The fastball ran up and in, hitting Fabian squarely in the face. He crumpled in the box in a pool of blood.

Fabian was taken to UF Health Shands Hospital. There the family found out Deric had six facial fractures, including a broken nose, and a broken orbital bone. He would need surgery that included putting five plates in his face and six weeks of absolutely nothing.

Recovery from surgery meant no workouts, no ground balls, and definitely no live at-bats. Fabian was put on a liquid diet. He took a liking to a broccoli cheddar soup from Panera Bread but the chunks of broccoli were too much to chew, so his mom would run it through a blender. Sound appetizing?

“I had that for four days straight, every single meal,” Fabian said. “It was really good the first time and then after that, it got old. I haven’t had it since.”

To make matters worse, he was also tasked with something tougher than hitting a 95 MPH heater: he had to give the best man’s speech at his brother’s wedding in December. By all accounts, it was a home run.

Not to mention with some surgery and a new set of braces to give him a straight smile. Fabian was quick to point out that — while he says he’s always been the better-looking of the two brothers — he’s extended that lead over brother Jud.

Getting back on the field

The things fans and the media don’t get to see come when the lights are off and when games aren’t being played. Guys hitting extra balls in the cage after a bad game or pitchers pouring over scouting reports before their next start.

For Fabian, the work began to just put back on weight. A liquid diet had taken 20 pounds off of his long frame. He was cleared to get back into the weight room in December. While he worked to regain what was lost, he slowly got back to hitting. First off of a tee, then soft toss. He wouldn’t get his first live at-bat until the Gators hit the field for spring practices.

And when you’re a hitter on the Florida Gators, there is no easing back into the lineup. Fabian’s first at-bat came against fellow sophomore left-hander Jac Caglianone. The first offering looked like Tom Cruise buzzing the tower in Top Gun. A 95 MPH fastball high and tight sent Fabian spinning out of the box.

Welcome back.

“I’ve done a lot of praying with my family. The support around me has been really awesome behind me and supportive of me,” Fabian said. “I’ve always had that in the back of my mind. They’re behind me no matter what. Once the pitch came at that I spun away from it was just, take a deep breath, you’re going to be alright.”

There hasn’t been any fear in the box. You can’t, at any level, be a successful hitter if you’re afraid of getting hit with a baseball. That’s a lot easier said than done, especially if you’ve literally worn one on the chin. Fabian hasn’t shown an ounce of fear since returning to the field all the while facing one of the best pitching staffs in the country.

He’s put back all 20 pounds that he lost and was leading the Gators in hitting this spring. Just days before the 2023 season begins, Fabian has already been through more than most players just to get back in the box and on the field.

“I don’t have any expectations for myself,” Fabian told Gators Online. “I’m just trying to wrap myself into the team and try to help us win ballgames. Whether that’s on the field or on the bench helping guys out. I just want to win.”