Everything You Need to Know, Probable Pitchers Gators vs Jacksonville

Gainesville, Fla. — Coming off of a sweep against Air Force this past weekend, the No. 10 Florida Gators baseball team will now be switching their attention to their midweek games.

Florida’s next outing on the diamond is Tuesday at 6:00 p.m. against the Jacksonville Dolphins at John Sessions Stadium in Jacksonville. This game will be streamed on ESPN+.

The all-time history between these two programs favors the Gators as well. Through 103 games, the Gators are 67-36 overall and 44-17 on the road.

Starting pitchers

Florida: RHP Billy Barlow (0-0, 0.00 ERA)

Jacksonville: LHP Alex Walsh (0-0, 0.00 ERA)

Florida will give Clemson transfer pitcher Billy Barlow the start on the mound on Tuesday. This will be his first career start for the Gators.

Barlow is a senior from North Myrtle Beach, S.C., and played his first three years of collegiate ball with Clemson. He appeared in 35 games and made 26 starts during that time. In these games, he went 8-6 and recorded a 4.69 ERA with 102 strikeouts in 109 1/3 innings.

Quick Look at Jacksonville

The Dolphins head into this matchup 0-3 on the season after being swept by West Virginia in their opening series. Their pitching staff gave up 17 runs across three games on 27 hits. It also had two wild pitches. Additionally, as a team, they hit just .178.

Jacksonville is led by ASUN Preseason Pitcher of the Year Richard Long, who finished last season with a 3.80 ERA over 15 starts and 83.0 innings pitched. He also struck out 62 batters and only walked 28.

As for their most dangerous hitter, that title should go to Chandler Howard. Howard enters the 2025 season as a Perfect Game Preseason All-Conference Selection as a designated hitter. He finished the 2024 season hitting .347 and smacked five home runs and totaled 38 RBIs.

A New Gators Offensive Identity?

Florida has always been known as a long-ball team. However, this year's team has a new wrinkle to it and that’s the speed and aggressiveness on the bases.

The Gator stole 14 bases out of 15 attempts during their opening series against Air Force. Nine of those came in the first game of the doubleheader on Saturday. That was a team-best in a game since March 9, 2010, against Illinois State.

Pacing the Gators in this category is Hayden Yost with four. Most of his damage came in Game Two of the series, stealing three bases, which was the most in a game since Sterlin Thompson swiped three against Tennessee on April 24, 2022.

A Revamped Donay

Florida’s Brody Donay had his best three-game stretch of his Gators' career against Air Force. He was tabbed as the SEC Player of the Week on Monday following a 7-for-10 performance with three homers — one in each game — two doubles, two walks, six runs, and five RBIs.