Series Preview: Florida hosts Columbia for weekend series
Florida baseball is hoping to get all three games in against Columbia this weekend after seeing the bulk of last weekend’s series against St. John’s rained out.
During the interim, the Gators outscored the North Florida Ospreys 23-4 over 16 innings — Tuesday’s game ended after seven due to an agreed-upon run rule — moving the team back over the .500 mark. They’ll face a Columbia Lions team that is considered elite on the Ivy League circuit and made the NCAA Tournament a year ago. However, the Lions are just beginning their season, which could mean rust.
Florida will of course be the favorite at home, but Columbia should provide a nice test that usually isn’t seen this early in the season. Here’s everything you need to know about the series.
Projected Starting Lineup: Florida Gators
Pos. | Player Name | AVG | OBP | SLG | AB | R | H | HR | RBI |
C | Luke Heyman | .300 | .467 | .300 | 10 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
1B | Jac Caglianone | .455 | .600 | .818 | 11 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 5 |
2B | Cade Kurland | .333 | .375 | .400 | 15 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 2 |
3B | Dale Thomas | .333 | .500 | .556 | 9 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 1 |
SS | Colby Shelton | .333 | .429 | .667 | 12 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 1 |
LF | Tyler Shelnut | .444 | .643 | .556 | 9 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 4 |
CF | Michael Robertson | .538 | .571 | .692 | 13 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 5 |
RF | Ty Evan | .661 | .375 | .286 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
DH | Tanner Garrison | .250 | .200 | .500 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Probable Starters: Friday (6:30 p.m. ET)
Team | Pitcher | Record | ERA |
FLORIDA | LHP Cade Fisher | 0-1 | 22.50 |
COLUMBIA | RHP Joe Sheets* | 3-4 | 4.26 |
*- stats are from 2023
NOTES: Cade Fisher didn’t look anything like the 2023 version of himself to kick off the 2024 season, but that isn’t going to change the fact that he is Florida’s Friday night starter. An angry Fisher might be exactly what this team needs, but he can’t afford to get wild at any point.
Junior right-hander Joe Sheets will get the ball on Friday for Columbia. He’s a pitch-to-contact/groundball guy, which doesn’t usually work against Florida, but he did put together a quality start (six innings, three earned runs) against Alabama last year.
Probable Starters: Saturday (6 p.m. ET)
Team | Pitcher | Record | ERA |
FLORIDA | RHP Liam Peterson | 1-0 | 0.00 |
COLUMBIA | RHP Andy Leon* | 6-3 | 4.79 |
*- stats are from 2023
NOTES: Liam Peterson dazzled in his debut Tuesday night and it quickly became obvious why he’s in line to be a fixture in Florida’s weekend rotation for the next three years. He only through 37 pitches over three innings against UNF, so he should be relatively fresh for Columbia. Grab the popcorn and enjoy the show, folks.
Andy Leon is another junior right-hander who started 12 games for Columbia last year. He also put together a quality start against Alabama last year and isn’t prone to giving up runs in bunches.
Probable Starters: Sunday (11 a.m. ET)
Team | Pitcher | Record | ERA |
FLORIDA | LHP Jac Caglianone* | 7-4 | 4.34 |
COLUMBIA | LHP JD Ogden* | 0-2 | 10.98 |
*- stats are from 2023
NOTES: The question with Caglianone on the mound will always be location. We know he can throw hard, but throwing hard and accurately is a whole ‘nother ballgame. All eyes will be on Cags Sunday as takes the mound for the first time this spring.
Senior lefty JD Ogden will close out the series on the mound for Columbia. There are plenty of question marks here. Ogden only started four games in each of the past two seasons and his walk rate shot through the roof. This might not be the most competitive game in the series, especially if Columbia decides to burn arms early in hopes of stealing one of the first two.
Other Players to Watch
The Lions haven’t played any games yet, so no one has had a chance to stand out. The top returning player on the roster is Cole Hage, though. Hage has been named an All-Ivy League First Teamer in back-to-back years and slashed .328/.436/.714 last season.
Griffin Palfrey is another name to watch out for. He batted .356 and drove in 44 runs in 2023.
Series History
OVERALL | 5-0 |
AT HOME | 5-0 |
AWAY | 0-0 |
NEUTRAL | 0-0 |
NOTES: Florida has won all five games it played against Columbia.
Follow the Action
FRIDAY (6:30 p.m. ET)
Watch: SECNetwork+
Listen: ESPN 98.1FM/850AM WRUF
Live Stream: fuboTV (try it free)
SATURDAY (6 p.m. ET):
Watch: SEC Network+
Listen: ESPN 98.1FM/850AM WRUF
Live Stream: fuboTV (try it free)
SUNDAY (11 a.m. ET):
Watch: SEC Network+
Listen: ESPN 98.1FM/850AM WRUF
Live Stream: fuboTV (try it free)
* Watch links go directly to game feed
Predictions
GAME 1: Florida, 9-4
GAME 2: Florida, 12-1
GAME 3: Florida, 15-6
The St. John’s incident isn’t scaring me off picking Florida as a heavy favorite in all three games against Columbia this weekend. The bats are going to be alive, Cade Fisher is going to bounce back and Liam Peterson is going to do his thing. Columbia shouldn’t have enough arms left to have a shot on Sunday, even if we get the bad Cags on the mound.
Series Prediction: Florida sweeps, 3-0.
Read more
Florida Baseball 2024 Position Preview: Outfielders
Florida Baseball 2024 Position Preview: Infielders
Florida Baseball 2024 Position Preview: Starting Pitchers
Florida Baseball 2024 Position Preview: Relief Pitchers
Dooley’s Dozen: 12 things Kevin O’Sullivan said about 2024 Gators baseball
Florida sophomore ranked No. 5 second baseman by D1Baseball
Florida star Jac Caglianone ranked second-best 1B by D1Baseball
Florida ranked No. 4 by Baseball America to start 2024
Two Gators named Preseason All-Americans by D1Baseball
Florida baseball projected to win SEC East, Caglianone Preseason POTY
Follow
Follow us @GatorsWire on Twitter and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.
