Gator Baseball 2023 Official Roster Tracker/Lineup???

I really have to question Jacob in his reporting. I wonder about Deric at second. Now since we are both here in Ocala I hope like crazy Deric is truly ready to jump at his chance at second. Its difficult to know where he is at since his facial injury in the fall. I wish nothing better for the Fabian family to see Deric out there tearing it up as a starter and knocking the cover off the ball. We shall see in just a few days if Jacob has his intel correct. I will say this, if Deric ends up the starter at second he definitely deserves it to beat out Kurland and Thomas.
And since we are closing in on 23 days away, here's an early reminder.

 

Easier to see for some...

 

He got hit in the face while batting. I think there was a facial fracture or some sort of damage that he was out the back half of the fall.

 

I agree as others have commented that Rivera has been much more the vocal leader this fall. He was easily heard during most every scrimmage barking out alignments and comments to his infield. Good to see the video showing him vocalizing his motivation.

 

Just putting my own countdown out there. Only 3 days to go until opening scrimmage.

 

My Top 10 questions going into Spring Practice...
1. Who gets the Sunday start? I think everyone knows we will see Sproat and Waldrep on either Friday or Saturday. Obviously Coppola or Neely have the best shot after that but the staff has also considered Cags, Hartzog, and Abner.
2. What's on second? Possibly Kurland, or Thomas, or Fabian. Could Jacob R. be right about his intel with Fabian. I believe Deric will be the backup SS to start with and see where he goes from there. If he hits as well as Jacob R. seems to think he will play somewhere.
3. If Kurland starts at second can the early enrollee deal with the pressure to hold down a mid fielding position in the SEC and still contribute from the plate? Another kid named Fabian once showed he could handle it so let's see what Cade can do.
4. Does Robertson earn the start in CF? I think he has. Its all about the right combination of the three outfielders to see who Sully goes with. Robertson has the edge with his speed at CF and on the base paths. Now he has to show he can get on the base paths.
5. What to do with Riopelle? Is he our starting catcher, probably? Do you stick him at DH, maybe? Does he play 1B on days when Cags is pitching, most likely? Does the rest of the team look at him as a leader behind the plate or just another transfer trying to take up playing time? Hhhmmmm....
6. Can Shelnut actually bat in the big league SEC? If so he could end up the starting DH and possibly see time backing up 1B or 3B. Tyler has that local connection and could be a crowd fav if he can get a few big hits early in the season.
7. Can Heyman or Lastres become dependable starters at catcher and bump Riopelle out of his spot? I'm not sure but good competition is a good thing to keep players working hard at getting better.
8. Who is going to step up and be the closer? I could probably lay awake at night pondering this one if I wanted to. I believe Cags is the most likely but the better the closer he becomes the less time at 1B and swings at the plate he will see. What an asset this kid is to this team. Certainly Slater, Abner, Hartzog, and a few freshmen could see time late in games. I do know if this team had another Michael Byrne they would go really far.
9. Will Rivera actually be the team leader thru the season? By that I mean what he shows on the field. Is he one of the best SS in the SEC? Does he keep his batting average up, get on base when needed, and find ways to bring in runs in key situations? Its one thing to bark out orders but its another to show everyone else how to get it done.
10. Where does Langford bat in the order? Is he still our leadoff because Robertson or Halter can't hold down the spot? Obviously he could be most dangerous batting second or third but even more important is who hits behind him? Probably the best answer is where ever he helps this team score the most runs.
11. And finally, yes a number 11 because it doesn't have much to do with baseball. If all the SEC baseball teams were forced to face each other on the basketball court, could any of them give the Gators much of a fighting chance. I get that height doesn't put the ball in the hoop but it sure makes it harder for the other team. Something to ponder......
Ladies and Gentlemen your starters for tonight's Gator Basketball.....
C - Pierce Coppola 6-8 240
PF - Yoel Tejeda Junior 6-8 215
SF - Jac Caglianone 6-5 245
SG - Wyatt Langford 6-1 220
PG - Dale Thomas 5-10 205

 

I'll be out there at practice on Friday. I hope to see as many of you there that can get there. I'm not available to be there Saturday or Sunday so hopefully a few others of you can get there and report back. Thanks ahead of time for all the details you can provide. The pitching intel we can piece together should tell us much about what the coaches have been seeing and hopefully planning on. I have to believe Friday starters on the mound should be Sproat and Waldrep. Saturday starters should be Coppola and Neely and Sunday starters should be Cags and Urgess Isas Goodasmine. Hope to see you there.

 

I just realized the last batting order I posted was from the Stetson game. The only change I added was putting Halter at 3rd. Here is what I had as a starting point for the spring.
#11 Robertson CF bats left
#36 Langford LF bats right
#14 Caglianone 1B bats left
#24 Rivera SS bats right
#15 Riopelle C bats left
#1 or #4 Kurland 2B bats right
#5 Halter 3B bats left
#6 Shelnut DH bats right
#2 Evans RF bats right
Its difficult to figure out what Sully is considering at the start of spring as to the batting order. We should get a quick idea of the starting fielders. But with split squads you can't always tell the top 5 in the lineup. Obviously my attention will be how Robertson looks as leadoff, if Rivera is still batting 4th, and is Kurland ready to step in. I feel DH will still be week to week for the first 3-4 weeks to see who emerges.