Florida appears to finally be back on the right track.
After a rough 11-game stretch that saw the No. 5 Gators go 5-6 and drop from their perch atop the college baseball rankings, things are finally clicking again, and it’s because Florida’s triumvirate of juniors — Nolan Fontana, Mike Zunino and Brian Johnson — are getting back to their usual ways.
Earlier this season coach Kevin O’Sullivan said his team goes as those guys go. And right now, the going is good. Actually, it’s better than good — just look at how the trio fared in Tuesday’s 8-2 win against Georgia Southern.
Fontana was 1 for 4, but reached base three times (once on a fielder’s choice) and scored a run. Zunino went 2 for 3 with a double, a walk and two runs scored. And Johnson absolutely raked, driving in a career-high-tying five runs, including three on a first-inning home run.
But Tuesday’s results are just the tip of the iceberg.
In Sunday’s win against Tennessee, Fontana returned to the leadoff role for the first time in just more than two weeks after struggles at the plate. The All-American shortstop was stuck in a lengthy rut, going a combined 5 for 36 (.139) during a nine-game stretch to open Southeastern Conference play. As his batting average dropped down to .274, Fontana dropped in the order.
Fontana responded with an 18-for-40 (.450) tear that has not only boosted his average up to .326, but propelled him back to the top of the Gators’ order.
During Fontana’s time lower in the lineup, the Gators went just 4-5, but O’Sullivan said the initial shakeup was necessary to get Fontana in the right spot mentally. O’Sullivan believed the soon-to-be first-round pick wasn’t seeing the pitches he should have been taking advantage of.
However, that has changed during Fontana’s surge. He is working the count against pitchers and then making them pay when they give him what he is looking for, driving in eight runs during the stretch and reaching base at a .542 clip.
Similarly, things have started to click all around for Johnson. After turning in one of his best performances on the mound this season in Sunday’s win — six scoreless innings against the Vols — and pounding Tennessee from the batter’s box en route to his first career Southeastern Conference Player of the Week honor, Johnson kept at it Tuesday. The Gators’ two-way star is now 10 for his last 21 with 12 RBI and three home runs, a stretch he said Tuesday was the most comfortable and confident he has felt at the plate since his freshman season.
Zunino, meanwhile, is continuing to prove why some believe he could go No. 1 overall in June’s MLB Draft. He’s hitting a team-leading .346 this season with 10 homers and 39 RBI, both of which are also team highs. The SEC offices might as well go ahead and engrave his name on the SEC Player of the Year trophy for the second straight year and save some time.
When all three of these guys are rolling at the plate, it’s nearly impossible to derail Florida, and that’s a scary thought as the season approaches its final leg.
Contact Tom Green at tgreen@alligator.org.
