2023 MLB Draft

Recruiting also requires signing guys that will join your program. If signing kids you know will get drafted/sign or those that won’t qualify simply to improve recruiting class ranking, not a good strategy. Men’s baseball shoukd be allowed full rather than partial ships

 

Does that even matter any longer with NIL money?

 

bigD—

A team of “X” number of Philadelphia lawyers and a slide rule will get you “X” number of answers to your question

 

Lotta Louisiana hospitals with a few bucks that can be "directed" to other avenues.

Halfway serious but Jay Johnson has shown himself to be a good recruiter, east coast west coast whatever even with more resources everyone's playing the same game.

 

No question the guy can recruit. But someone that would know has stated their NIL last season was 10 times what UF spent. That makes it a lot easier to "recruit"

 

But do these kids know that Baton Rouge is not NoLa?

I think that every Gator recruit knows that Gainesville is not South Beach.

 

Brad Wilkerson was really good but maybe just before your time.

 

Wilkerson was the baseball GOAT at Florida.

 

Only one Gator alum ever has been an MVP in MLB. On the last day of one season, he fell to second place in the league in batting average, which kept him from winning the triple crown. He finished first in his league that season in HR, RBI, runs, slugging and total bases. He still holds the franchise record for season RBI. He had Hall of Fame stats for his career, but retired after seven seasons because of injuries. He later became the only former MVP to earn MLB Executive of the Year.

 

Al Rosen? Only with UF for a semester before leaving for Minor League ball. Spent 4 years serving in the Navy during WW II, which shortened MLB career. Imagine baseball players making that sacrifice now? Ted Williams and many others did at that time. Indians actually cut his pay by $5,000 after fifth straight 100 RBI season. That and back probs forced his retirement to become a financial broker for 20 years until going back to baseball as a front office exec. Interesting player. Shortened career and being Jewish at that time in US history likely hurt his fame as a player.

 

Al Rosen was at UF one Fall term. Did he ever play varsity ball for UF?

But great trivia question. Even better than my "Who was the last Gator basketball player to wear #41 as a Gator?" It wasn't Neal Walk. Norm Sloan screwed it up for one game.

 

Kenny McClary (sp?)?

 

Michael Kerr.

 

By the way, Stephen Ross, Dolphin Owner and billionaire, was at UF almost 2 years before transferring to Michigan. If we can count Al Rosen, we should count him as a famous Gator as well.

 

no thanks

 

Ross gives UF money.

 

Just becasue I have nowhere else to post this... And this thread has MLB in the title.

 

His splitter and the threat of his spitter are huge weapons.

 

If he really learns to pitch with a well located fastball (the confidence to use his velo) then IMHO his splitter and the threat of it becomes even greater.

 

If he can develop consistency, he will move up very quickly.