I know it is off topic but sharing this discussion group with the ladies and fast pitch softball and a pitcher named King I just had to think of The King and His Court. Please forgive me.
I got to play against the King and his Court when I was at Chipola in 1971-72. The man was very talented to say the least.
I’ve had a few conversations with Aidan, seems like a good kid, definitely young. Should be interesting to see how he handles backend/potentially closing duties but his stuff in fall and spring practices has been very good.
I've seen King pitch once in the Fall and once in Spring and talked to others at the Park who have seen him this Spring and he is expected to contribute- perhaps mid week SP and middle relief in SEC schedule He seems to throw a wicked splitter and his challenge (as for all) is location and consistency. I also heard that LP has been hit hard in some scrimmages and they have worked on simplifying his mechanics. He has the quality stuff but his control issues did him in last year. It appears that he is the Friday night guy (for now) but that takes e certain mental toughness that some guys handle well- relish it- and some don't. Remember Cade Fisher and to an extent Mace a few years back... Compare to the guys who relished the responsibility-- Shore, Faedo, Singer... bulldog mentality. We shall see. In my view, Clemente has looked the best of the three SPs and he was solid again on Sunday going 5 innings. I've heard from others that Philpott is the closer for now-- I thought McNeillie would get the nod so we'll see. We must significantly up our game on the mound from last year and I sense we will. Barlow is someone that can go 2-3 middle innings but we need Menendez and McNeillie to up their consistency and Philpott to handle the closer’s role as well as Neely did last year. There is great depth among the field players so it will be a challenge for Sully to get the guys the reps needed to stay sharp and engaged. Nadeau at the moment is the guy that impresses me in the way he plays the game but there doesn't appear to be starting slot for him at the moment. He's played second base in some scrimmages and his range and speed are superior to Kurland plus he's a LHB... but Kurland will not be dislodged. Yost and Wilson have hit very well of late but where to slot those guys? Donay has hit very well including oppo and hit one out to Hull Road on Sunday – a rocket- he should get ABs every game as C or DH—I expect 20 HR season (maybe more)…. Can’t wait!
77– Thanks for your update. I had heard from a reliable source that Sully’s expecting King to contribute this season.
Agree 1000% on all counts. Clemente and Coppola have looked really good. Brody's bat has been extremely impressive (hitting off our better pitchers). You mentioned the two guys (Nadeau and Yost) who, in the scrimmages I have seen, IMO have outperformed the players they are slated to play behind.
Multiple sources reporting rotation of Peterson/Clemente/Coppola. (But weather forecasts imply a Saturday double-header anyway.)
Saturday doubleheader will make it hard for me on Saturday with both baseball and basketball season tickets.
"It's the most wonderful time of the year"......in Gator sports. We've got the men's basketball team having one of the best year's ever. Softball is loaded and has a chance to win it all. Gymnastics is readying for another deep run. You never know.... Track and Field is right around the corner. Then throw in golf and tennis with their talent. Who else am I'm I forgetting.....Oh yes! Gator Baseball is back. Play Ball!!! Merry Christmas Gator fans, it's the happiest season of all!
Pretty nice opening weekend. The lineup was super- or should I say all three different lineups were super. I routinely argue that the guys with hot bats need to see the field, but, for now, they have redefined hot. The parallel goal for pitchers is minimal walks and they achieved that, too. The next test is continuing both of those patterns with the chilly wind blowing in from the river at JU.
Just an FYI for those interested in early numbers on the baseball team. As of this morning, The Gators rank #9 in Team BA at .357, #5 in Team ERA at 1.42 and #73 in Fielding at .977. We're #26 in hits with 82, #18 in HR with 12, #11 in OBP at .471, #19 in runs scored with 74, #5 in Slugging % at .609, #1 in K's per 9 innings at 15.0, #1 in strikeout to walk ratio at 7.31 & #4 in WHIP at 0.81. Individually, Brody Donay is #28 in BA at .524, #3 in slugging % at 1.238 and tied with a bunch of guys for #8 in HR's with 4. Liam Peterson is tied with a bunch of guys for #1 in ERA at 0.00. Pierce Copploa is tied for #9 in K's with 20 and Luke McNeillie is tied for 39th with 16. Copplola is #8 in K's per 9 innings at 18. McNeillie hasn't pitched 9 innings so isn't on that list yet. Jake Clementa & Coppola are tied for #46 in WHIP at 0.60. I know it's way too early to get much meaning out of all of this, but maybe something to talk about for a while.
