For All the Marbles: Scouting Florida before the National Championship

LSU will play against another dangerous team in Florida, and just like Wake Forest, they are evenly matched up.

DATES/TIMES

• Saturday, June 24 @ 6 p.m. CT (ESPN)
• Sunday, June 25 @ 2 p.m. CT (ESPN)
• Monday, June 26 @ 6 p.m. CT (ESPN – if necessary)

STADIUM

• Charles Schwab Field (24,000)

RANKINGS

• LSU – No. 5 NCAA National Seed
• UF – No. 2 NCAA National Seed

RADIO

• LSU Sports Radio Network affiliates, including 98.1 FM in Baton Rouge
• Live audio at www.LSUsports.net/live

LSU will face off against Florida in the 2023 College World Series Championship Series from June 24-26.

LSU is seeking its seventh national championship and its first since 2009. Florida is seeking its second national championship. This series will feature all three Golden Spikes Award finalists as Florida’s Jac Caglianone and LSU’s Paul Skenes and Dylan Crews will all take the field during this series

LSU leads the all-time series versus Florida, 66-52-1, as the series began in 1971. This weekend’s CWS championship series marks the first meeting between the teams since March 25-27, 2022, when the Tigers won two of three games over the Gators in Gainesville, Fla.

This is the sixth time LSU has faced off against Florida in the College World Series. The Tigers hold a 4-2 advantage over the Gators in Omaha. LSU won two College World Series games over the Gators in both 1991 and 1996 en route to national championships.

The Gators, led by 16th-year head coach Kevin O’Sullivan, has arguably Florida’s most talented team ever and are undefeated in the College World Series with two days rest.

The last time these two SEC powers met was in the 2017 College World Series Championship Series, where Florida swept LSU to claim its first national championship.

In the final scouting report of the year, let’s take a look at the deadly Florida Gator squad.

Players to watch in the batting lineup

Dylan Widger-USA TODAY Sports

UTIL Jac Caglianone has been Florida’s rock all year long as he is not only Florida’s best hitter, but he is also a starter on the mound.

Caglianone is the nation’s leading home run leader with 31 dingers with a .336 batting average, 87 hits (team-high), 13 doubles and two triples. He also has 84 RBIs, which is aalso a team-high. He is one of three players to be nominated as a finalist for the Golden Spikes Award with LSU’s Skenes and Crews.

If Caglianone isn’t Florida’s best player, then it is outfielder Wyatt Langford. The All-American has batted .363 from the plate this season with a team-high 25 doubles, three triples and 19 home runs. Langford also has a .493 on-base percentage Langford is a projected Top 10 draft pick in this year’s MLB draft.

All-SEC shortstop Josh Rivera is another player to watch. Rivera has a .361 batting average with 19 home runs and 71 RBIs. He also has an on-base percentage of .461.

Catcher BT Riopelle is another dangerous batter that Florida has in its lineup. The All-SEC catcher has blasted 17 homers and has plated 66 RBIs.

Freshman second baseman Cade Kurland is a rising star in college baseball. Kurland, who is another All-SEC player on Florida’s squad, has a .290 batting average with 16 doubles, 16 home runs and 48 RBIs

Pitchers in the Rotation to Look Out For

Cyndi Chambers / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Gators also have three talented pitchers in its starting rotation with Hudson Waldrep, Brandon Sproat and Caglianone in its starting rotation.

Waldrep (9-3) has a 4.15 ERA with 142 strikeouts and 48 walks. Sproat (8-3) has a 4.69 ERA with 120 strikeouts and 40 walks. Both Waldrep and Sproat are 2023 Top-80 draft prospects.

On the mound, Caglianone (7-3) has a 3.78 ERA with 81 strikeouts, 49 walks and 46 hits allowed in 69.0 innings pitched.

Florida has one of the best closers in the country in All-SEC pitcher Brandon Neely. Neely (2-2) leads the SEC in saves with 13 and has 64 strikeouts.

Reliever Cade Fisher (6-0) is another reliever Florida likes to use. Fisher has a 3.22 ERA with 42 strikeouts and 12 walks through 44.2 innings pitched.

Phillip Abner (3-0) is another name to watch out for coming out of the bullpen. Abner has a 3.16 ERA with 51 strikeouts and 19 walks through 51.1 innings pitched.

Ryan Slater (10-1) has thrown the most innings out of the bullpen with 58.2 innings pitched. Slater has a 3.68 ERA with 48 strikeouts and 19 walks.

Prediction

I expect LSU to win the series in three games. Because both LSU and Florida are so evenly matched up offensively, this game will come down to pitching, which gives the adavnatage to LSU.

Although Florida’s starting rotation is just a tad better than LSU’s, the Tigers bullpen has only allowed five runs in its last seven games, including four shutouts. Meanwhile Florida’s bullpen has allowed five runs total in the last three innings.

If LSU’s pitching staff can keep it up and LSU can get to the bullpen earlier than expected, the Tigers will have no problem beating the Gators.