The Florida Gators baseball team represents the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida, traces its origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its ...

in the sport of

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

. Florida competes in Division I of the

National Collegiate Athletics Association The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

(NCAA), and the Eastern Division of the

Southeastern Conference The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is an American college athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central and Southeastern United States. Its fourteen members include the flagship public universities of ...

(SEC). They play their home games in Condron Ballpark on the university's

Gainesville, Florida Gainesville is the county seat of Alachua County, Florida, Alachua County, Florida, and the largest city in North Central Florida, with a population of 141,085 in 2020. It is the principal city of the Gainesville metropolitan area, Florida, Gaine ...

, campus, and are currently led by head coach Kevin O'Sullivan. In the 105-season history of the Florida baseball program, the team has won 15 SEC championships and has appeared in 12

College World Series The College World Series (CWS), officially the NCAA Men's College World Series (MCWS), is an annual baseball tournament held in June in Omaha, Nebraska. The MCWS is the culmination of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Divisi ...

tournaments. The Gators won their first national championship in 2017.

History

The modern University of Florida was created in 1905 when the

Florida Legislature The Florida Legislature is the legislature of the U.S. State of Florida. It is organized as a bicameral body composed of an upper chamber, the Senate, and a lower chamber, the House of Representatives. Article III, Section 1 of the Florida Cons ...

passed the Buckman Act, and thereby consolidated the university's four predecessor institutions into the new "

University of the State of Florida The history of the University of Florida is firmly tied to the history of public education in Florida, education in the state of Florida. The University of Florida originated as several distinct institutions that were consolidated to create a sin ...

." The university fielded its first varsity baseball team, and enjoyed its first winning baseball season, in 1912.
2011 Florida Gators Baseball Media Supplement
'', University Athletic Association, Gainesville, Florida, pp. 93–94, 95–97, 98–101, 112–125 (2011). Retrieved June 6, 2011. During most of Florida baseball's early existence, the new university's athletic association suffered from a lack of financial resources, and few of the head baseball coaches were full-time baseball coaches.

William G. Kline William Gordon Kline (June 21, 1882 – after 1942) was an American college football, baseball and basketball coach. At different times, Kline served as the head coach of the Nebraska Cornhuskers baseball, basketball and football teams, as we ...

was also the

athletic director An athletic director (commonly "athletics director" or "AD") is an administrator at many American clubs or institutions, such as colleges and universities, as well as in larger high schools and middle schools, who oversees the work of coaches and ...

, head football coach, and head basketball coach; James L. White was Florida's athletic director and head basketball coach;

Brady Cowell Warren C. "Brady" Cowell (December 12, 1899 – April 15, 1989) was an American college football, basketball, and baseball coach and college athletic director. Cowell played football, basketball and baseball at Kansas State Agricultural College, ...

, Ben Clemons and

Lewie Hardage Lewis Woolford Hardage (February 11, 1891 – August 29, 1973) was an American college football player and college football and baseball coach. Hardage was an All-Southern halfback every year he played: 1908, 1909, 1911, and 1912—the first t ...

were assistant football coaches; and Sam McAllister was the head basketball coach and an assistant football coach. A notable exception was

Lance Richbourg Lance Clayton Richbourg (December 18, 1897 – September 10, 1975) was an American professional baseball player who was a Major League right fielder for eight seasons between and . Richbourg played college baseball for the University of Florid ...

, who was a Florida alumnus and a

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

outfielder for the Boston Braves and others, and led the Gators to an impressive 39–21 overall record (a .650 winning percentage) in 1922, 1923 and 1926. McAllister was the Gators' last pre-

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

coach, and he returned from military service to lead the Gators baseball team again in 1946 and 1947.

Fuller era: 1948–1975

The modern post-war era of the Florida Baseball program began with head coach

Dave Fuller Dave Fuller (1915 – September 15, 2009) was an American college baseball coach who led the Florida Gators baseball team of the University of Florida for twenty-eight seasons. Early life and education Fuller attended Wake Forest University i ...

assuming control in 1948. Fuller was originally hired as a physical education instructor in 1946, and also served as an assistant football coach under four different Gators head coaches. Ultimately, he became the longest-serving Gators head coach in any sport, and won more games than any other Gators coach, after leading the Gators baseball team for 28 seasons. Fuller brought stability and consistency to the program, and his Gators teams won SEC championships in 1952, 1956 and 1962, and made appearances in the NCAA tournament in 1958, 1960 and 1962. His final record was 557–354–6 (.611). Florida

Bergman era: 1976–1981

Fuller's successor, Jay Bergman, advanced the Florida baseball program a step further. After a difficult transition season in 1976, Bergman's Gators showed marked improvement, winning an SEC championship and SEC tournament title in 1981. His teams also qualified for the NCAA Regionals in 1977, 1979 and 1981, and compiled a 7–6 tournament record, but in each instance did not advance beyond the double-elimination opening round of the NCAA tournament. In his six seasons as the Gators' skipper, Bergman posted an overall win–loss record of 216–113 (.657)—the best multi-season winning percentage until that time, and still the second best in Gators baseball history.

Arnold era: 1984–1994

Joe Arnold Joseph A. Arnold (born February 26, 1947) is a former American college and professional baseball coach. During his twenty-four seasons as a head coach, Arnold led the college baseball teams at Florida Southern College, the University of Florida, ...

followed Jack Rhines' short two-season stint as Florida's head coach. Arnold's Gators won SEC championships in 1984 and 1988, and SEC tournament titles in 1984, 1988 and 1991. His teams made seven appearances in the NCAA tournament, and for the first and second time ever, the Gators advanced to the

1988 File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Australian ...

and

1991 File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phil ...

. In 11 seasons coaching the Gators, Arnold compiled an overall record of 434–244–2 (.640).

Lopez era: 1995–2000

Andy Lopez Andrew Lopez (born November 30, 1953) is a retired American college baseball coach. He was most recently the head baseball coach at University of Arizona, and has served as the head baseball coach at Cal State Dominguez Hills, Pepperdine, and ...

took over the program in 1995, two seasons removed from leading the

Pepperdine Waves The Pepperdine Waves are the athletics teams of Pepperdine University, located outside the city of Malibu, California. They compete at the Division I level of the NCAA. The school is a member of the West Coast Conference for the majority of its ...

Pepperdine University Pepperdine University () is a private research university affiliated with the Churches of Christ with its main campus in Los Angeles County, California. Pepperdine's main campus consists of 830 acres (340 ha) overlooking the Pacific Ocean and t ...

to their only national championship in the 1992 College World Series. In his second season as Florida's head coach in 1996, he led the Gators to a 50-win season and the semifinals of the

. In 2000 and 2001, however, the Gators were eliminated in the opening rounds of the NCAA tournament, and Lopez was replaced. In seven seasons, Lopez posted an overall record of 278–159–1 (.636).

McMahon era: 2001–2007

Pat McMahon became Florida's baseball coach in 2001, after coaching the

Mississippi State Bulldogs Mississippi State Bulldogs is the name given to the athletic teams of Mississippi State University, in Mississippi State, Mississippi. The university is a founding member of the Southeastern Conference and competes in NCAA Division I. Sports sp ...

for the four preceding seasons.GatorZone.com, Baseball History, 2007 Roster
Pat McMahon
. Retrieved June 6, 2011. Early in the 2003 season, the Gators began to make a comeback with several freshly scouted prospects, including Andy Ramirez (first base) David Headage (right field), and Randy Thompson (shortstop). The 2003 season set the standard for the next two years of baseball, entering the NCAA tournament in both the 2003 and 2004 seasons. The 2005 season was the best in school history, as the team won the SEC championship and advanced to the

for the first time in seven years, ultimately losing to the

Texas Longhorns The Texas Longhorns are the athletic teams representing the University of Texas at Austin. The teams are sometimes referred to as the Horns and take their name from Longhorn cattle that were an important part of the development of Texas, and a ...

, two games to none in the final championship round of the Series. The expectations for the Gators were high in 2006; they were the consensus No. 1 team in the preseason polls, but the team struggled through the 2006 season. The Gators found themselves one game under .500 (26–27) heading into their final series against the

LSU Tigers The LSU Tigers and Lady Tigers are the athletic teams representing Louisiana State University (LSU), a state university located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. LSU competes in NCAA Division I, Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Associat ...

in Gainesville. The team surprisingly won two of the three games to finish the season at .500 (28–28). The Gators' 10–20 SEC record was the second worst in the conference, and they did not qualify for the SEC Tournament, nor were they selected for the NCAA Regionals. After missing the NCAA Regionals again in 2007, McMahon was fired on June 7, 2007. McMahon finished his six seasons as the Gators' head coach with an overall record of 202–113–1 (.641).

O'Sullivan era: 2008–present

Kevin O'Sullivan became the head coach of the Florida baseball team following the 2007 season.GatorZone.com, Baseball Coaching & Support Staff
Kevin O'Sullivan
. Retrieved June 6, 2011. In each of his first four seasons, O'Sullivan's Gators improved their overall record and SEC standing. In 2008, his first season as the Gators' skipper, the team finished 34–24 overall, 17–13 in SEC play, and in second place in the SEC Eastern Division standings. In 2009, the Gators compiled an overall record of 42–22, 19–11 in the SEC, and in first place in the SEC Eastern Division. O'Sullivan's 2010 Gators finished with an overall win–loss record of 47–17, 22–8 in SEC play, and SEC regular season champions. In each of his first three seasons, his Gators also showed post-season improvement, too: early elimination in the NCAA Regional in 2008; progressing to the NCAA Super Regional in 2009; and a berth in the

in 2010. In 2011, Florida finished the regular season 41–15 overall, 22–8 in the SEC, and SEC regular season co-champions—sharing the regular season conference title with the

South Carolina Gamecocks The South Carolina Gamecocks represent the University of South Carolina in the NCAA Division I. The University of South Carolina uses "Gamecocks" as its official nickname and mascot. While the men's teams were traditionally known as the Fighti ...

and

Vanderbilt Commodores The Vanderbilt Commodores are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Vanderbilt University, located in Nashville, Tennessee. Vanderbilt fields 16 varsity teams (6 men's teams and 10 women's teams), 14 of which compete at the National ...

. After defeating the

Alabama Crimson Tide The Alabama Crimson Tide refers to the intercollegiate athletic varsity teams that represent the University of Alabama, located in Tuscaloosa. The Crimson Tide teams compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's Division I as a me ...

, Georgia Bulldogs and Vanderbilt Commodores to win the SEC tournament, the Gators received the overall No. 2 seed in the sixty-four team NCAA tournament. The Gators swept the NCAA Regional three games to none, and beat the Mississippi State Bulldogs two games to one in the NCAA Super Regional, and advanced to the 2011 College World Series. By beating the seventh-seeded

8–4 in the opening game of the 2011 Series, and then defeating the sixth-seeded Vanderbilt Commodores twice, 3–1 and 6–4, the Gators earned a berth in the best-of-three College World Series championship finals. In the championship finals, the South Carolina Gamecocks defeated the Gators in two straight games, 2–1 and 5–2; the Gators finished the 2011 season with an overall record of 53–19—the most games the Gators have ever won in a single season. FloridaVsFloridaState03-13-18

Florida finished the 2012 regular season with a record of 40–16, and were selected as the No. 1 seed in the 2012 NCAA Division I baseball tournament. Jonathon Crawford pitched the seventh

no-hitter In baseball, a no-hitter is a game in which a team was not able to record a hit. Major League Baseball (MLB) officially defines a no-hitter as a completed game in which a team that batted in at least nine innings recorded no hits. A pitcher wh ...

in NCAA Tournament history against the Bethune-Cookman Wildcats in the opening round of the Gainesville Regional. The Gators swept the double-elimination regional tournament in three straight wins over Bethune-Cookman (4–0) and the

Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets is the name used for all of the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech), located in Atlanta, Georgia. The teams have also been nicknamed the Ramblin' Wrec ...

(6–1, 15–3), and then swept the NC State Wolfpack in two straight games to win the best-of-three Gainesville Super Regional (7–1, 9–8) and earn a bid to the 2012 College World Series. The 2012 season came to an abrupt end in the College World Series, as the Gators lost their first two games to the

7–3 and the

Kent State Golden Flashes The Kent State Golden Flashes are the athletic teams that represent Kent State University. The university fields 19 varsity athletic teams in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division I level with football competing in ...

5–4. Florida returned to the College World Series for the ninth time in

2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...

and for the tenth time in 2016. The Gators made their 11th College World Series in 2017, finally breaking through and winning their first national championship after sweeping

LSU Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 near ...

two games to none in the championship series. They returned to the College World Series in 2018 to defend their title, but fell to

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...

in the semifinals. After an up-and-down 2019 campaign, the

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...

Gators got off to a school-best 16–1 start before the remainder of the season was cancelled due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

Stadium facilities

Condron Ballpark at Alfred A. McKethan Field is the home field for the Florida baseball team. The playing surface is named for Florida alumni Alfred A. McKethan and is located on the University of Florida's Gainesville campus. The stadium includes seating for approximately 7,000 fans (expandable to 10,000), a press box, locker rooms and coaching staff offices. The ballpark replaced Alfred A. McKethan Stadium at Perry Field after the 2020 season. Home plate faces northeast with the sun behind the stadium to provide shade for fans. A 360-degree open concourse allows fans a constant field view. Permanent chairback seats accommodate 4,000 spectators, with 700 club seats, berm capacity of over 2,000, and an option to temporarily expand capacity to around 10,000. The new ballpark is adjacent to Pressly Softball Stadium and Dizney Stadium for lacrosse. McKethan Stadium was demolished to make way for the James W. "Bill" Heavener Complex, a football training facility.

Head coaches

Year-by-year results

College World Series appearances

The Florida Gators have reached the College World Series 12 different times, including three consecutive trips from 2010 to 2012 and four consecutive trips from 2015 to 2018 under Kevin O'Sullivan.

Florida in the NCAA tournament

*The

NCAA Division I baseball tournament The NCAA Division I Baseball Championship is held each year from May through June and features 64 college baseball teams in the United States, culminating in the eight-team Men's College World Series at Charles Schwab Field Omaha in Omaha, Neb ...

started in 1947. *The

format Format may refer to: Printing and visual media * Text formatting, the typesetting of text elements * Paper formats, or paper size standards * Newspaper format, the size of the paper page Computing * File format, particular way that informatio ...

of the tournament has changed through the years.

Championships

National championships

Florida won its first national championship in 2017, sweeping rival LSU in the CWS Championship Series to emerge victorious in the school's third CWS Finals appearance. The Gators have also reached the College World Series Championship Series two additional times, getting swept both times.

SEC regular season championships

The Gators have won a total of 15 SEC regular season championships, second most among the 14 current SEC members. Their most recent title came in 2018 under Kevin O'Sullivan.

SEC Tournament championships

The Gators have won seven SEC Tournament championships, third most among the SEC's current 14 members. However, after winning five in 11 years from 1981 to 1991, it was 20 years before Kevin O'Sullivan led the Gators to their sixth SEC Tournament Championship in 2011.

Player awards

National awards

Dick Howser Trophy The Dick Howser Trophy is bestowed annually to the national college baseball player of the year. The award is named after former collegiate and Major League Baseball (MLB) player and manager Dick Howser, who died of brain cancer in 1987 at the a ...

Mike Zunino Michael Accorsi Zunino (born March 25, 1991) is an American professional baseball catcher for the Cleveland Guardians of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Seattle Mariners and Tampa Bay Rays. Before beginning h ...

(2012) :

Brady Singer Brady Alan Singer (born August 4, 1996) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Kansas City Royals of Major League Baseball (MLB). He made his MLB debut in 2020. Early years Singer first attended Tavares High School in Tavares, Fl ...

(2018) *

Golden Spikes Award The Golden Spikes Award is bestowed annually to the best amateur baseball player in the United States. The award, created by USA Baseball and sponsored by the Major League Baseball Players Association, was first presented in 1978. It is given to ...

(2012) *

Baseball America College Player of the Year Award The ''Baseball America'' College Player of the Year Award is an award given by '' Baseball America'' to the best college baseball player of the year. The award has been given annually since 1981. Winners See also *List of college baseball a ...

(2012) *

Rotary Smith Award The Rotary Smith Award was created in 1988 to honor the most outstanding college baseball player of the year. The award was founded by the Greater Houston Sports Association. In 1996, the Rotary Club of Houston joined the award committee. Prior to ...

Brad Wilkerson Stephen Bradley Wilkerson (born June 1, 1977) is an American former professional baseball outfielder and first baseman in Major League Baseball for eight seasons. Wilkerson played college baseball for the University of Florida, and was selected ...

(1998) *

Senior CLASS Award The Senior CLASS Award is awarded to the most outstanding senior student-athlete in 10 NCAA Division I sports. An acronym for "Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School," the Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete ...

Brandon McArthur Brandon may refer to: Names and people *Brandon (given name), a male given name *Brandon (surname), a surname with several different origins Places Australia *Brandon, a farm and 19th century homestead in Seaham, New South Wales *Brandon, Q ...

(2009) *

John Olerud Award The John Olerud Two-Way Player of the Year Award (known colloquially as the John Olerud Award) is a college baseball award given to the best two-way player of the season. The award is named after former Washington State Cougars All-American pitch ...

Brian Johnson Brian Johnson (born 5 October 1947) is an English singer and songwriter. In 1980, after the death of Bon Scott, he became the third lead singer of the Australian rock band AC/DC. He and the rest of the band were inducted into the Rock and Rol ...

(2012) * Collegiate Baseball Freshman Player of the Year :

JJ Schwarz Jeffrey James Schwarz (born March 28, 1996) is an American professional baseball catcher in the Oakland Athletics organization. He played college baseball for the Florida Gators. Career Schwarz attended Palm Beach Gardens Community High School ...

(2015)

SEC Awards

Player of the Year Several sports leagues honour their best player with an award called Player of the Year (POY) . In the United States, this type of award is usually called a Most Valuable Player award. Association football In association football, this award is he ...

Matt LaPorta Matthew Vincent LaPorta (born January 8, 1985) is an American former professional baseball first baseman and left fielder who played for the Cleveland Indians of Major League Baseball (MLB) from 2009 to 2012. LaPorta played college baseball for t ...

(2005, 2007) :

(2011) * Pitcher of the Year : Justin Hoyman (2004) :

(2018) * Freshman of the Year :

Preston Tucker Preston Thomas Tucker (21 September 1903 – 26 December 1956) was an American automobile entrepreneur. He is most remembered for his Tucker 48 sedan, initially nicknamed the "Tucker Torpedo", an automobile which introduced many features ...

(2009) : Austin Maddox (2010) :

Austin Cousino Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...

(2012) :

Logan Shore Logan Michael Shore (born December 28, 1994) is an American professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. He previously played college baseball for the Florida Gators. Amateur career Shore attended Meadow Creek Christian School in Andover, ...

(2014)

Florida's first Team All-Americans

Former players in Major League Baseball

Many former Florida Gator baseball players have gone on to play in

and other professional leagues. As of 2015, over 170 UF alumni have been chosen in the

Major League Baseball draft The first-year player draft is the primary mechanism of Major League Baseball (MLB) for assigning amateur baseball players from high schools, colleges, and other amateur baseball clubs to its teams. The draft order is determined based on a lo ...

and over 60 players have appeared in a Major League game. The first was

, who made his MLB debut with the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...

in 1921. Other notable alumni include 1953 American League MVP

Al Rosen Albert Leonard Rosen (February 29, 1924 – March 13, 2015), nicknamed "Flip" and "The Hebrew Hammer", was an American baseball third baseman and right-handed slugger for the Cleveland Indians of Major League Baseball for ten seasons in the 194 ...

, 2006 World Series MVP

David Eckstein David Mark Eckstein (; born January 20, 1975) is an American former professional baseball player. He was an infielder in Major League Baseball (MLB) for ten seasons. He played college baseball for the University of Florida and played professiona ...

, Gold Glove Award winner

Harrison Bader Harrison Joseph Bader (born June 3, 1994), nicknamed "Tots," is an American professional baseball center fielder for the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the St. Louis Cardinals. Born and rais ...

, and former

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...

managing general partner

Haywood Sullivan Haywood Cooper Sullivan (December 15, 1930 – February 12, 2003) was an American college and professional baseball player who was a catcher, manager, general manager and club owner in Major League Baseball. From May 23, 1978, through Novembe ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Florida Gators Baseball Baseball teams established in 1912 1912 establishments in Florida