- Florida baseball is ranked No. 10 in the USA Today preseason coaches poll.
- The Gators return five starters, including shortstop Colby Shelton and catcher Luke Heyman.
- Florida opens the season on Feb. 14 against Air Force.
Coming off two straight College World Series trips, Florida baseball is ranked No. 10 in the USA Today preseason coaches poll, which was released Tuesday.
The Florida Gators return five starters from a team that went 36-30 and reached the CWS semifinals last season, including shortstop Colby Shelton (.254, 20 HR, 56 RBIs), catcher Luke Heyman (.246, 16 HR, 52 RBIs), second baseman Cade Kurland (.245, 14 HRs, 44 RBIs), catcher/designated hitter Brody Donay (.246, 14 HR, 32 RBIs) and outfielder Ty Evans (.316, 13 HRs, 43 RBIs).
On the mound, Florida returns sophomore righty starter Liam Peterson (3-6, 6.43 ERA), redshirt sophomore lefty starter Pierce Coppola (1-4, 8.75 ERA), righty reliever Jake Clemente (2-0, 5.34 ERA) and righty reliever Luke McNiellie (4-6, 7.07 ERA, two saves).
Florida fortified its roster in the transfer portal with the additions of Stetson outfielder Kyle Jones, Miami outfielder Blake Cyr, USF infielder Bobby Boser, Texas Tech infielder Landon Stripling, Jacksonville infielder Justin Nadeau and Clemson pitcher Billy Barlow.
UF has made 14 trips to the College World Series in program history and nine under current head coach Kevin O’Sullivan, who is entering his 18th season. Florida opens the season on Feb. 14 at Condron Family Ballpark against Air Force (6:30 p.m.).
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In addition to the Top 10 ranking in the USA Today Poll, Florida is ranked No. 7 preseason by Baseball America, No. 10 by D1Baseball and No. 11 by Perfect Game.
Kevin Brockway is The Gainesville Sun’s Florida beat writer. Contact him at kbrockway@gannett.com. Follow him on X @KevinBrockwayG1
