The No. 2 Gators baseball team went 3-1 over the past week, and the games couldn’t have been much more different from one another.
The midweek matchup last Tuesday turned into a 12-6 win over in-state rival FSU in which Florida went Super Saiyan in the bottom of the fifth inning with seven runs off three different Seminole pitchers.
After splitting its first two games with South Carolina in Columbia — both of which featured plenty of offensive fireworks with 10 combined home runs — UF squeaked by with a 3-2 win over the Gamecocks in the rubber match on Sunday to take its first conference series of the season.
Heading into Tuesday’s 6 p.m. game against Jacksonville at McKethan Stadium, here’s a look back on the past week’s best and worst performances.
OVERACHIEVERS
Jonathan India, 3B
India absolutely torched pitchers last week. The junior from Coral Springs, Florida, has recorded two hits in each of his last seven games and went 8-of-14 against the Seminoles and Gamecocks with four home runs. In 126 games played in his freshman and sophomore campaigns, India hit just 10 total dingers. His batting average for the season has ballooned to .400. For comparison, the next highest batting averages on the team belong to right fielder Wil Dalton and designated hitter Nelson Maldonado at .329.
Michael Byrne, RHP
Byrne closed out all three of the Gators’ wins this week. He allowed one hit and two walks through 5.2 innings pitched while earning saves in the two wins against the Gamecocks. The junior right-hander still hasn’t allowed a run to score this season, cementing his status as Florida’s premiere reliever in a bullpen full of younger pitchers.
UNDERACHIEVERS
Keenan Bell, 1B
While there have been several surprises on the offensive side of the ball for the Gators this season (see: Nick Horvath), Bell has been one of the few disappointments for the team. Entering the FSU game, Bell was batting .237 on the year after jumping out to a .300 average after the Miami series on Feb. 25. But Bell went 2-of-13 during the week and was lifted for a pinch hitter in the second game of the South Carolina series after going 0-for-2. Bell also struck out five times during his 13 at-bats. Looking at the bigger picture, Bell also has just two extra-base hits since March began.
Deacon Liput, SS
After coming back from suspension during Florida’s series against UCF, Liput has been a shadow of his former self. While his career numbers aren’t spectacular, he held a respectable .248 career batting average for the Gators. This season, however, Liput has regressed to a .161 average and hit .177 over the past week. Though he has an RBI in each of his previous four games, his 3-for-17 performance through the week coupled with his lack of production from the plate through his reinstatement has been underwhelming.
Follow Morgan McMullen on Twitter @MorganMcMuffin and contact him at mmcmullen@alligator.org.
Third baseman Jonathan India slugged a two-run home run in Florida 3-1 victory over Auburn on Thursday.
