CORAL GABLES, Fla.—The hum of the Miami-Dade Metrorail whizzed behind Mark Light Stadium. The crack of Miami's bats rocked the bleachers inside. The 3,481 fans in attendance, mostly wearing the home colors, acted accordingly for a raucous series-opening win for No. 16 Miami (3-2).
The Hurricanes, fueled by three home runs, outmuscled the No. 23 Florida Gators (4-2) in a 6-4 Friday-night win. Miami tagged starter Bobby Poyner (1-1, 2.89) and Shaun Anderson for the long balls. Six of Miami’s 10 hits went for extra bases.
On paper, the offense got it done for Miami. Look deeper and it’s left-hander Chris Diaz who made it happen. After allowing three first-inning runs, Diaz shut the Gators down for the next six innings.
“Diaz made some really good pitches,” Gators coach Kevin O’Sullivan said. “He’s an All-American for a reason.”
Doubles by Braden Mattson and Justin Shafer in the first inning drove in three Florida runs. After finishing the first going 3 for 5 with runners in scoring position, the Gators went 0 for 6 from the second inning on.
Florida entered the series have won the five of its last six against the in-state rival. Taylor Gushue erupted in 2012 with two home runs in game 2 of Florida’s last visit to Mark Light. He continued his Miami hot streak with a career-high four hits. He’s five for his last eight at the plate.
It wasn't enough. The Gators lost plate discipline. Florida squandered four opportunities to bring a run home from third base, which is something it practices ad nauseam. O’Sullivan addressed his team in the Miami third-base dugout following the game. He wasn’t happy. A four-inning start from his starting pitcher and unproductive at-bats can do that. The young Gators let the Hurricanes off the hook.
“Once we put our foot on the gas, it’s time to jam it down,” Gushue said. “We need to go. We’ll focus on that tomorrow.”
There were bright spots for Florida. Its freshmen didn’t appear rattled in a hostile environment. Anderson displayed a plus-fastball again. Crafty left-hander Kirby Snead struck out all three batters he faced, including Miami’s stud freshman Willie Abreu who homered opposite field off Poyner in the third inning.
Buddy Reed flashed the leather on a diving snag in the second inning to prevent a run from scoring. Ryan Larson finished with two hits.
“I thought our freshman handled the atmosphere pretty good to be honest with you,” O’Sullivan said. “So that’s something to take away from this.”
It doesn’t get any easier for Florida who start freshman right-hander Brett Morales against senior left-hander Bryan “B-Rad” Radziewski on Saturday night at 7. Right-hander Karsten Whitson goes against left-hander Andrew Suarez in the finale.
Miami played like a different team in game 1. The roles have reversed. Florida, led by the likes of Brian Johnson and Mike Zunino, dominated Miami with brawn. The biggest players on the field came from Gainesville. That wasn’t the case on Friday. While the offense may have improved, the formula remained the same for Miami.
“The bottom line it all revolves around their starting pitching. They’ve got Diaz, B-Rad and Suarez. That’s three lefties that are very talented. [Miami] ran into a few balls tonight, but obviously their team is going to revolve around their starting pitching.”
Follow Adam Pincus on Twitter at adamDpincus.
Catcher Taylor Gushue swings during Florida’s 4-1 loss to Florida State on March 12, 2013 at McKethan Stadium. Gushue had a career high four hits, three singles and a double, on Friday against Miami.
