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The No. 5 Florida Gators baseball team (13-5) returns to Florida Ballpark on Thursday night to open up Southeastern Conference play. The Gators welcome the Texas A&M Aggies (15-4) for a three-game series.
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Pitching Matchups
- Thursday: Tommy Mace (RHP) v. Dustin Saenz (LHP)
- Friday: Jack Leftwich (LHP) v. Bryce Miller (RHP)
- Saturday: Hunter Barco (LHP) v. Jonathan Childress (LHP)
Gators Shifting Gears
After a 10-2 loss on the road to in-state rival Florida State, the Gators are refocusing and setting sights on SEC play. Tuesday night showcased an offensive struggle and the lack of consistency in the Florida bullpen.
However, SEC play will shift the focus for the Gators on the mound. Florida starters have been strong presences in weekend series going for a combined 7-1 record.
Florida’s Mace enters Thursday night’s game with a 3-0 record and a 1.96 ERA. Through 23 innings, the right-hander has allowed 13 hits and five runs while tallying a team-high 31 strikeouts. Leftwich has been equally impressive allowing 13 hits and six runs through just over 24 innings pitched.
Offensively, the Gators will look to get back on track at the plate. This Florida roster has a plethora of talented hitters who saw a near shutdown against the Seminoles.
The Gators will look to the bats of Jacob Young, Jud Fabian and Colby Halter for some revival at the plate.
The Gators RBI leader, Nathan Hickey, has seen some success at Florida Ballpark. He was the first player to record a home run and a grand slam at the new ballpark. Hickey records 21 RBIs, 21 hits, four home runs and 16 runs for the Gators this season.
Florida will look to regain momentum at the plate but will go up against some strong Texas A&M pitchers.
Scouting Texas A&M
The Aggies enter this weekend’s matchup on an 11-game win streak. They have yet to play against a ranked opponent but that will change in their meeting with Florida.
The Texas A&M starting pitchers enter this weekend’s series with an impressive resume. The Aggies’ starting pitchers all rank in the top 25 in the nation for strikeouts.
Although the Aggies haven’t seen any SEC play they do already lead the conference in total strikeouts with 243. In addition, Aggies’ pitchers lead the SEC in batters struck out looking with 85.
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Offensively the Aggies are led by senior Will Frizzell. The infielder leads the Aggies in RBIs (17), hits (26), runs (19) and home runs (7) on the season. In addition, the Aggies have seen a solid performance from sophomore Logan Britt. Britt has posted 17 RBIs and 19 hits for the Aggies.
How to Watch
- Thursday 7 p.m.
- Watch: SEC Network
- Listen: ESPN 98.1 FM/850 AM WRUF
- Friday 6:30 p.m.
- Watch: SEC Network+
- Listen: ESPN 98.1 FM/850 AM WRUF
- Saturday 1 p.m.
- Watch: SEC Network+
- Listen: ESPN 98.1 FM/850 AM WRUF
