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The NCAA Gainesville Regional: 20 names to know

Don Williams, Lubbock Avalanche-Journal
·8 min read
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Florida left fielder Wyatt Langford is ranked No. 3 among this summer's Major League draft prospects by MLB.com. Langford has 43 home runs the past two seasons.
Florida left fielder Wyatt Langford is ranked No. 3 among this summer's Major League draft prospects by MLB.com. Langford has 43 home runs the past two seasons.

The Gainesville Regional of baseball's NCAA tournament starts Friday at Condron Family Ballpark with host Florida (44-14) facing Florida A&M (29-28) and No. 2 seed Connecticut (43-15) taking on No. 3 seed Texas Tech (39-21). The winner of the four-team double-elimination bracket will be decided Sunday or Monday.

More: NCAA Gainesville Regional baseball results, schedule

Florida is ranked No. 2 and UConn No. 13 in this week's poll by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association.

Here are several of the regional's key players to keep an eye on:

Jac Caglianone, 1B/LHP, Florida

Caglianone is one of five finalists for the John Olerud Award that goes to the nation's top two-way player. The 6-foot-5, 245-pound sophomore is batting .349 with a school-record 28 home runs and 76 runs batted in. On the mound, he's 6-3 with a 4.14 earned-run average and 74 strikeouts in 63 innings.

Gavin Kash, 1B, Texas Tech

The 6-3, 210-pound sophomore made a big splash in his first year after transferring from Big 12 rival Texas. Kash ranks tied for eighth in NCAA Division I in home runs with 24 and seventh in RBI with 81. He leads the Big 12 in both categories. Kash is tied for second in Tech history in single-season homers and tied for ninth in RBI.

Wyatt Langford, LF, Florida

The 6-1, 220-pound junior earned all-America recognition last year when he tied the school-single season record with 26 home runs. Caglianone broke that record this year, but Langford is batting .398 with 17 homers and 43 RBI, plus an impressive ratio of 45 walks to 36 strikeouts. His .521 on-base percentage ranks ninth in Division I. MLB.com ranks Langford the No. 3 prospect for this summer's Major League draft.

Dominic Freeberger, 3B, UConn

Freeberger transferred to UConn after four years at North Carolina-Asheville, where he earned first-team all-Big South recognition in 2021 and 2022. This season, he was the Big East player of the year. He ranks first or second in the conference in hits (82), RBI (60) and runs scored (55).

Sebastian Greico, DH, Florida A&M

FAMU boasts four players with double-digit home run totals and more than 45 RBI. Greico leads the way with a school-record 17 homers and a team-high 68 RBI. The 6-3, 200-pound junior joined the Rattlers as a transfer this season from Eastern Kentucky.

Connecticut first baseman Ben Huber has team highs of 16 home runs and 63 runs batted in. He started his career at Limestone, an NCAA Division II program in South Carolina.
Connecticut first baseman Ben Huber has team highs of 16 home runs and 63 runs batted in. He started his career at Limestone, an NCAA Division II program in South Carolina.

Ben Huber, 1B, UConn

Another big slugger, another transfer making good. Huber is a 6-3, 245-pound senior who arrived at UConn in 2022 from Limestone, a Division II school in South Carolina with an enrollment of about 2,100. In his second season in Storrs, Huber is batting .330 with team highs of 16 homers and 63 RBI. He's one of five Huskies on the all-Big East first team.

Josh Rivera, SS, Florida

Rivera is one of five finalists for the Brooks Wallace Award that goes to the nation's top shortstop, and MLB.com ranks him No. 111 among 2023 draft prospects. The 6-2, 215-pound junior goes into the regional with a .363 average, 15 homers, 61 RBI and a team-leading 13 stolen bases.

This is Rivera's fourth season with the Gators after he turned down going pro out of high school as a San Diego Padres draft pick.

Nolen Hester, LF, Texas Tech

Hester's .536 on-base percentage has him fourth in NCAA Division I, and he's reached base safely in each of his past 46 games, a streak that started March 4 against Michigan. A disciplined left-handed leadoff batter, Hester has 58 walks to 24 strikeouts. He transferred back to his home state for this season after four years at Wofford.

Zach Fogell, LHP, UConn

Another impact graduate transfer, Fogell is in his first year at UConn after pitching at Brown, where he started in 10 of 12 appearances last season. He's been a bullpen weapon for the Huskies, going 8-0 with a 1.74 ERA and recently stringing together 23 1/3 scoreless innings. His 34 appearances are tied for fifth in Division I.

Texas Tech's Kevin Bazzell (4) throws to first base against North Dakota State in a non conference baseball game, Saturday, April 8, 2023, at Dan Law Field at Rip Griffin Park.
Texas Tech's Kevin Bazzell (4) throws to first base against North Dakota State in a non conference baseball game, Saturday, April 8, 2023, at Dan Law Field at Rip Griffin Park.

Kevin Bazzell, 3B, Texas Tech

Yet another transfer, Bazzell came to Tech from Dallas Baptist as a second-semester freshman in 2022. Debuting this season as a redshirt freshman, he's batting .354 with 10 homers, 60 RBI and 23 doubles. The doubles total leads the Big 12 and is tied for fourth among players in power-five conferences.

Bazzell was a first-team all-Big 12 honoree.

Hurston Waldrep, RHP, Florida

Ranked 20th on MLB.com's list of top draft picks for this summer, Waldrep (7-3, 4.83 ERA) has struck out 117 in 78 1/3 innings. His fastball, split-change and slider all are rated above average or well above average on the 20-80 scouting scale.

In keeping with a theme, the 6-2, 210-pound junior is a transfer from Southern Mississippi in his second year at Florida.

Brandon Sproat, RHP, Florida

Another of the Gators' top-100 draft prospects (No. 79), Sproat already has been drafted twice: in the seventh round by the Texas Rangers in 2019 and in the third round by the New York Mets last year. In his fourth season at Florida, the 6-3, 215-pound righthander is 7-3 with a 4.71 ERA and 106 strikeouts in 84 innings.

Justin Willis, RHP, UConn

Willis is a sixth-year senior who was a big pickup from Vanderbilt after the 2019 season. Though standing only 5-foot-8, he's the UConn career saves leader with 25. That includes 11 this season, most in the Big East and most among pitchers in the Gainesville Regional.

Florida A&M pitcher Hunter Viets (22) was 8-4 with a 2.98 earned-run average last season and is 8-2 with a 3.12 ERA this season.
Florida A&M pitcher Hunter Viets (22) was 8-4 with a 2.98 earned-run average last season and is 8-2 with a 3.12 ERA this season.

Hunter Viets, RHP, Florida A&M

The 6-4, 220-pound senior has made 15 starts and won eight games in back-to-back seasons, going 8-4 with a 2.98 ERA in 2022 and 8-2 with a 3.12 ERA this year. Combined over the two seasons, he's struck out 171 in 177 1/3 innings.

Viets went to Penscola (Fla.) Escambia, the same high school as Hall of Fame running back Emmitt Smith. He transferred to FAMU from Auburn-Montgomery, an NCAA Division II school.

Mason Molina, LHP, Texas Tech

The Red Raiders' No. 1 starter is 5-2 with a 3.72 ERA and 98 strikeouts in 77 1/3 innings. Big 12 coaches voted Molina second-team all-conference honors.

The 6-2, 215-pound sophomore has single-game strikeout totals of 11 against Michigan, 12 against Baylor and 13 against Kansas, and his season strikeout total is second in the Big 12 behind the 117 registered by Oklahoma State's Juaron Watts-Brown.

David Smith, CF, UConn

A team-high 44 walks have helped the Huskies' leadoff batter fashion a .434 on-base percentage. On base is where Smith wants to be, because his 38 stolen bases this season are fourth in NCAA Division I and most among players in the Gainesville Regional. He's two away from the school record for steals.

He's scored 69 runs, tied for 29th in Division I and tied with Florida left fielder Wyatt Langford for most among players in the regional. Smith started his career at La Salle and has made second-team all-Big East in each of his first two years with UConn.

Brandon Neely, RHP, Florida

One of Florida's five first-team all-conference selections, Neely led the SEC during the regular season with 10 saves in 10 chances. The 6-3, 210-pound sophomore is 0-2 with a 4.08 ERA, but has 57 strikeouts in 39 2/3 innings.

Zach Morea, RHP, Florida A&M

Morea has 40 appearances out of the bullpen this season, the most of any pitcher in all three divisions of the NCAA. Not only that, he pulled off an uncommon feat last weekend with saves in four consecutive games to help FAMU win the Southwestern Athletic Conference tournament.

The Rattlers went 5-1 in the tournament and the 6-2, 185-pound senior with a sidearm delivery saved the last four — two on Friday, one on Saturday and the championship game on Sunday. For the season, he's 4-3 with a 6.62 ERA and six saves.

Florida A&M reliever Zach Morea (18) notched saves in four consecutive victories last weekend at the Southwestern Athletic Conference tournament and leads all NCAA pitchers this season with 40 appearances.
Florida A&M reliever Zach Morea (18) notched saves in four consecutive victories last weekend at the Southwestern Athletic Conference tournament and leads all NCAA pitchers this season with 40 appearances.

Brandon Beckel, RHP, Texas Tech

Beckel was one of the Big 12's most effective relievers this season, going 5-2 with a 2.01 ERA and six saves.

Usually used by Tech coach Tim Tadlock as a multi-inning reliever, the 6-4, 225-pound junior has struck out 64 in 44 2/3 innings.

B.T. Riopelle, C, Florida

Another impact transfer, Riopelle played three seasons at Coastal Carolina and the past two at Florida. He's one of the hottest hitters coming into the Gainesville Regional. In three games last week, he had three home runs and 10 runs batted in, setting a Florida record for RBI in the SEC tournament. That gave him six homers and 21 RBI in May and 13 and 60 for the season.

The lefty-hitting senior was first-team all-SEC last year and a semifinalist for the Buster Posey Award that goes to the nation's top catcher.

This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: The NCAA Gainesville Regional: 20 names to know