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Florida Gators set pitching rotation for Gainesville Super Regional

Untitled designby:Nick de la Torre•06/08/23•

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Photo courtesy of UAA Communications / Bryce Mitchell

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — The Florida Gators are two games away from Omaha but have to get there through the South Carolina Gamecocks.

Florida will start Brandon Sproat in the opener on Friday. Hurston Waldrep will pitch in game two on Saturday. If necessary, Jac Caglianone will throw on Sunday in the third game.

This is a call back to the original rotation. Florida went with Jac Caglianone to open the Gainesville Regional. Caglianone pitched on short rest but had a quick outing in Hoover. Caglianone was able to overpower FAMU on the way to a win. The Gators will be going back to their tried and true rotation.

This is a rotation that helped win eight of 10 SEC weekend series and sets Florida up best to punch its ticket to Omaha.

One caveat is the weather. There is rain forecasted for the late afternoon and night on Friday. O’Sullivan noted that Jac Caglianone threw a light bullpen on Thursday. That way, if for some reason the game would be halted during Sproat’s start, the Gators could come back with Caglianone.

Last time out for the Gators

Gators right-hander Brandon Sproathad a solid start against Texas Tech. He limited Texas Tech to four hits and three runs over six innings. Sproat walked two and struck out seven after Jac Caglianone started Game one on Friday.

“I thought Brandon threw the ball good. Gave up three over six for a quality start. He did everything we asked him to do,” Kevin O’Sullivan said. “We made a couple of key mistakes during the game that ended up hurting us a bit, but Texas Tech played really good. Their starter was really good. But we had our opportunities, just didn’t have our best at-bats in the most crucial times.”

Waldrep was even better in his start against UConn. He surrendered just five hits and one run over seven innings. Waldrep struck out 12 and walked two in his 101-pitch outing. With two more potential games in the regional, the Gators needed Waldrep to eat innings Sunday. He did that and more, turning in his best performance since a dominant outing against Georgia on April 15. It was his fifth in which he has struck out 10 or more batters across 16 starts.

Waldrep is the only player on the Florida roster that has Super Regional experience. The junior started a game for Southern Miss in the Hattiesburg Regional last season. Waldrep earned the loss in that game to the eventual National Champion Rebels.

Schedule for the Gainesville Super Regional

Friday, June 9 – 6:00 pm – ESPN2

Saturday, June 10 – 3:00 pm – ESPN2

Sunday, June 11 – TBD

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