Man, I could say it 10 times but that was special. Basically unhittable. Change up was unbelievable and so cool to see Sproat reach back in the 7th and blow 97 and 98 past people 80 pitches in.
This kind of performance is contagious for our pitchers. Lets see what Waldrep does tomorrow! Go Gators!!
Wasn't Bama leading Division 1 in batting average? LOL. Sproat was FILTHY and the Gator defense was squeaky clean. Enjoyed a victory margarita after coming home after the game. I might keep this scorecard.
BT drove the ball deep three times with nothing to show for it. If only a wafting out he might have had one or two dingers.
That was an awesome night to be at the ballpark. You got to go back to the Regional Final against Auburn and Langworthy's shot off the glove to find a better one. Great pitching, great defense, both teams rising above their numbers, and an SEC Opener above it all. I never expected Sproat was ready to pitch a complete game, with a one hitter at that. Rivera's play going to the other side of 2B was the farthest range to his left I've seen him make a play and finish it. The high school senior breaking thru the mired hitting of everyone and just hitting it high enough to bounce over the wall. Well all this sets us up for a chance at a fantastic Friday. Waldrep stepping on the mound now has big shoes to fill. Welcome to the Gators. Again just get us into the 6th inning and go from there. Sully has all the options he needs to get us thru the DH. Look for Abner, Slater and either Fisher/Neely to end Game 2. Then we got Ficarrotta, Hartzog, and Fisher or Neely for Game 3. At this point I hope we can hold Nesbitt for Tuesday against FSU.
3/16/2023 9:04:00 PM Baseball Falls at Second-Ranked Florida, 3-0, on Thursday A pitchers’ duel favored the Gators in the SEC opener GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Alabama baseball suffered a 3-0 loss to second-ranked Florida on Thursday evening at Condron Family Ballpark. The 22nd-ranked Crimson Tide is now 16-3 on the season, including an 0-1 mark in Southeastern Conference play. A pitchers' duel saw both teams combine for only four hits on the night. The two high-powered offenses were held scoreless until the sixth when a two-run home run got Florida on the board. The Gators added one more in the seventh to secure the 3-0 win. Brandon Sproat (3-0) tossed a complete game shutout, striking out 11 while walking two and allowing one hit for the win. Alabama's arms kept pace with Sproat, first with Hagan Banks. The Tide starter tossed 3.1 scoreless frames with two punchouts. He was followed by Hunter Furtado (0-1) who was tagged with the loss. The junior worked a career-high 4.2 innings and allowed two runs on two hits and two walks with four punchouts. From Head Coach Brad Bohannon "Tonight was a great college baseball game. Their starter (Brandon Sproat) was outstanding – he was up to 100 mph and was throwing all three of his pitches for strikes. (Hagan) Banks and (Hunter) Furtado did a great job of matching him, but they hit a home run with a guy on base and that was the difference in the game." How It Happened B6 | A two-out walk was followed by a Cade Kurland home run to put the Gators in front. (2-0, Florida) B7 | The UF leadoff man reached before moving to third on a wild pitch and a stolen base. The two extra bases proved beneficial as a 1-3 groundout allowed the runner from third to cross. (3-0, Florida) Postgame Notes Hagan Banks tossed a career-long 3.1 innings in his start. His previous high for innings pitched was 2.0, which he had thrown two times previously and most recently at Samford on March 7. Hunter Furtado's 4.2 innings are a new career-high at Alabama. His previous long for an outing while with the Tide was 3.2 against Murray State on March 5 of last season. The 4.2 innings are a new season-long outing by a Tide reliever. The previous high was 3.0, which had been done twice and most recently by Riley Quick in game one against Columbia on March 11. Will Hodo has reached base safely in his last 17 games played. Ed Johnson finished 1-for-3 and has recorded a hit in his last six games. Over the streak, Johnson is batting .444 (8-18) with a triple, home run, seven RBI, two runs, two walks and a hit-by-pitch. Johnson has also reached base safely in 16 straight games dating back to Feb. 18. Caden Rose's reached base streak came to an end. He had reached base safely in 36 consecutive games from April 25, 2022 until this evening. Rose's hitting streak also came to an end at six games. Over that stretch, the junior batted .350 (7-20) with three doubles, a home run, five RBI, eight runs, five walks, two hit-by-pitch and a pair of stolen bases. The Crimson Tide will look to even the series on Friday. Alabama will send sophomore right-hander Ben Hess to the mound with Florida calling on junior righty Hurston Waldrep. First pitch in game two is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. CT on SEC Network+.
I forgot about FSU being so soon. They now have a great coach and will be a thorn in our side for years. I hope we kick butt to get things off on the right foot.
Found it, last complete game was a 7 inning game by Hunter Barco in 2021 in the SECT. But the last 9 inning complete game by a Gator was in May of 2019 at Missouri. Here's the best part, the last complete game pitched by a Gator at home was Tommy Mace in 2019 against.......... Alabama.
But this one is more memorable. Bama was leading all of Division 1 in batting average but not now. I will not say where their bats are now residing.
Bama's been struggling since Lou Ghehrig's alma mater came to town and took 2 of 3 from the Tide. 20 runs in last 5 games compared to 11.4 runs per game in their first 14. Not that RPI is terribly useful just yet, but Bama is 1-3 against top 20 and 15-0 vs 100+ RPI teams. Go GATORS! ,WESGATORS
3 of those 4 vs #3 rpi Columbia..lol Other than UF only other team theyve played w/ a winning record is Ala St.(260 rpi).