After Hot Summer, Clemente Eager To Take Next Step For UF in ’25

Jake Clemente had a challenging start to his collegiate career.

The right-handed pitcher from Coral Springs arrived in Gainesville with high expectations — he was the fifth-ranked right-handed pitcher by Perfect Game in the 2022 class coming out of high school — but a shoulder injury ended Clemente’s 2023 season before it began.

Clemente did not anticipate being forced to sit out his freshman season. During his rehab time, he was not able to throw a baseball, so taking care of his body is something Clemente focused on while rehabbing from his injury.

“[The injury] really made me like self-reflect and focus on the future,” Clemente said. “I was in the training room a ton, just working on my craft, just working on my body.”

That work is starting to pay dividends. Clemente enters his second full season as one of the key arms on a talented Florida pitching staff. The Gators return nine pitchers from a staff that helped them reach the College World Series for the 14th time in program history in 2024, and the 6-foot-3 Clemente figures to have a major role on a weekend rotation that likely will include staff ace Liam Peterson and left-hander Pierce Coppola.

For Clemente, everything starts with his fastball. Command and control of the pitch are two things Clemente says he works on to keep the fastball as his strongest pitch. Working on location is what Clemente said has allowed him to take that pitch to the next level.

“A lot of people have really good fastballs, but it is really difficult to locate it. I feel like that has helped me get to that next step,” said Clemente, who hit mid-to-high 90s on the gun during his redshirt freshman season. “The best way I am able to improve it is just by being able to throw it in the zone and being able to control where I throw it.”

Clemente wants to keep adding to that arsenal by improving his slider and changeup. Since a lot of what goes into pitching is mechanics, he said he is putting more focus on mental preparation to help improve his craft. Clemente said he has cues he follows to prepare when he throws these pitches. For his slider, he said he makes sure to have his fingers on top of the baseball when he throws the pitch. For his changeup, he said he makes sure to release the ball out in front of him.

“Those are the two things that have really helped me, allow those pitches to kind of get the same as my fastball, which is being able to throw it for strikes,” Clemente said.

Breaking Out

As a freshman, Clemente made 19 appearances, 17 of which came out of the bullpen. But it was two singular moments from early in the 2024 season that made Clemente realize he was able to compete at a high level in college baseball.

“My first start was the midweek game against JU [Jacksonville University].” Clemente said. “I would say it was either that game or the game against Arkansas where I came in on Saturday. I think that was what really made it all click.”

Clemente struck out five in two innings during that start against Jacksonville on April 16. Eleven days later, in his next appearance, he pitched two innings in relief of Jac Caglianone to help Florida secure a 9-5 victory over No. 2 Arkansas in a tough environment in Fayetteville.

As he continued to gain the trust of head coach Kevin O’Sullivan as the season went on, Clemente was used in high-leverage situations during Florida’s postseason run. That was a rewarding experience for Clemente after having to sit out his freshman season.

Clemente started the winner-take-all regional final against Oklahoma State with Florida’s pitching staff on fumes, getting the Gators off to a good start with 3 ⅓ innings of one-run ball. As the Gators advance to the College World Series, He made three appearances in Omaha, pitching 3 ⅓ innings, allowing just one hit, one run and striking out four. Opposing hitters hit .234 against Clemente all season, which was second-lowest among UF pitchers who pitched more than 25 innings.

“I couldn’t really ask for much more, that’s kind of why I came to Florida is so I can compete in those types of moments,” Clemente said. ”Being able to do that and help my teammates win makes it 10 times better.”

While the 2024 season was a roller-coaster ride for the Gators baseball team, Clemente said that is one of the things he personally learned from his first season on the mound.

“There’s going to be tons of ups and downs, and that I cannot let it affect me,” Clemente said.

Summer in the Cape

He took what he learned from the college season into the summer. He pitched for the Brewster Whitecaps in the Cape Cod League, where he excelled. Clemente said his goals for the summer were to be a starter on his team and make the All-Star game – he did just that, making six starts with a 3.00 ERA and a 1.00 WHIP in 27 innings and earning the All-Star starting nod for the East. His success in the Cape Cod League has given him even more confidence heading into the 2025 season.

“The competition [in the Cape] is really difficult, they take the best players from the best schools,” he said.

As a redshirt sophomore, Clemente will be draft eligible in 2025. D1 Baseball ranked Clemente as the No. 79 college prospect in the 2025 MLB Draft, one of six Gators ranked in the top 150. A big season could improve his standing in the draft.

Florida pitching coach David Kopp spoke highly of Clemente’s growth. Before Clemente’s first college start against Jacksonville, Kopp said Clemente went into O’Sullivan’s office and told him he was ready to pitch more often.

“He basically went into Sully’s office and he said, ‘Hey, I’m ready to pitch more’,” Kopp said. “He has kind of grown into a very mature, really hard worker.”

Kopp said that start against the Dolphins was when he noticed. Clemente’s pitching was trending in a positive direction. The way Clemente carried himself on the mound, Kopp said, is a big reason the coaching staff thought his pitching was going to get more consistent.

“You could tell within that start, like he had a really good demeanor about him, and you could tell at that point that’s when things started to change,” Kopp said.

Clemente’s ability to get ride on his fastball and make hitters swing and miss make it a tough pitch, Kopp said. However, Kopp said Clemente needs to work on achieving consistency when he throws his secondary pitches.

“The best part of his game is his fastball,” Kopp said. “He has got to continuously and consistently throw his secondary pitches for strikes.”

Clemente’s dad, Paul, said he thinks his son’s best quality is the heart he possesses. After the 2024 season and the summer in the Cape Cod League, he thinks Jake has experienced a jump in his maturity levels.

But watching him break out in the 2024 season made their household proud, he said.

“I would say he has got a lot of heart and soul,” Paul Clemente said. “It was really kind of a source of pride for my wife and I.”