Gators Aidan King Has Royaly Good First Career Start

The Florida Gators freshman conquored the competition in his first career start

The Gators' freshman was stellar in his first start | Kyle Lander / Gators Illustrated

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Earning his first career start on Saturday for the Florida Gators, Aidan King made sure not to disappoint in Game Two against Harvard. 

The righty was rewarded with a weekend spot after some impressive displays out of the bullpen. Before the game against the Crimson, King had 10 ⅓ innings under his belt. In these innings, he posted a 0.87 ERA, struck out 12 and gave up only seven hits. 

It wasn’t all to his effort that put him in this position, though. Left-handed pitcher Pierce Coppola went down with an undisclosed injury that freed up a spot as well. 

Nonetheless, King walked onto the mound on Saturday and took his chance well, looking as dominant as any other Gator pitcher this season. He threw six shutout innings, striking out eight, giving up two hits and walking just one batter along the way. The six innings pitched and eight strikeouts were also career-highs for the youngster. 

"I thought he was outstanding,” Gators head coach Kevin O’Sullivan said after the doubleheader. “He was extremely efficient and he was really good."

What makes King so dangerous on the mound is his ability to command four different pitches. Sometimes the hurlers can really only go to two to three pitches, but not this freshman. 

“I mean, threw his fastball to both sides of the plate,” O’Sullivan said. “Had his slider going, straight change going, split-finger going, had all four pitches going.”

With these numbers added to season totals, King sits at a 0.55 ERA in 16 ⅓ innings and has struck out 20 batters. 

It’s important that he continues to pitch this way with SEC play approaching rapidly. If the injury to Coppola is long lasting, then King will most likely be the choice to step in after how threw against Harvard. 

For Florida’s opening SEC series, it is a tough one. They travel to Knoxville, Tenn., to face off against the Tennessee Volunteers, who happen to be red hot to start 2025.  No one will expect him to throw perfectly every game. That’s nearly impossible. What the Gators need from King are consistency and to limit the opponents as much as possible to give the team the best chance to win. 

The Gators series against the Volunteers starts on March 14 and runs through March 16. However, before fans will be able to see King toeing the rubber again, they’ll have the pleasure of watching their team take on Florida State. The game against the Seminoles is on Tuesday and is slated to start at 6 p.m. in Tallahassee, Fla.