Everything was set in an orderly way when the Gators began their 2012 campaign.
With Hudson Randall, Karsten Whitson and Brian Johnson, Florida was one of the few teams in the nation that would return its entire weekend rotation.
It was an area of comfort, as the Gators assumed that one of the best pitching staffs in the Southeastern Conference would only grow to get better.
“We’re in a good place,” UF coach Kevin O’Sullivan said before the season. “But the bottom line is they’re going to have to work hard and they’re going to have to improve.”
Entering this weekend’s series at Tennessee (20-13, 6-6 SEC), No. 7 Florida (26-7, 7-5 SEC) brings a rotation different from the one that made headlines in February.
The starter for the opener tonight at 6 is Jonathon Crawford, a sophomore who threw 3.2 innings as a freshman.
Saturday will be Whitson, who has thrown just 7.2 innings in an injury-shortened season. Sunday is unknown.
Typical Friday night starter Hudson Randall missed last weekend’s series against LSU with what O’Sullivan described as a “tired arm.”
As of Thursday, the staff had yet to reach a decision on whether or not he will pitch this weekend, leaving Sunday’s matchup against Tennessee right-hander Nick Williams “to be announced.”
“I have not spoke with our trainer yet,” O’Sullivan said Tuesday night. “I’m hoping he’s back. … We’ve got a couple days to work with.”
Randall’s last outing was his only loss of the season, a six-inning appearance at Ole Miss that began a slide for the Gators during which they lost five of seven. After dropping from No. 1 on Monday and defeating new No. 1 Florida State on Tuesday, Florida is looking to get back to where it was before the season took a bad turn.
The rotation is changing on the fly, but it might not matter.
Although the Volunteers have picked up upsets of No. 3 Kentucky and No. 10 South Carolina this season, their lineup will hardly have Florida pitchers concerned.
No team in the SEC has fewer hits or RBI than Tennessee this season. Only Alabama, owners of a 13-20 record this year, has scored fewer runs or registered a lower team batting average than Tennessee. The Gators have won nine out of their last 10 meetings with the Volunteers, outscoring them by a combined final of 63-17 in those nine victories.
Aside from all of this, Florida isn’t changing its tune. Thus is the case when a loss to North Florida and two winnable lost causes against LSU are still fresh on the mind.
“We’ve got obviously a tough weekend series against Tennessee,” O’Sullivan said. “Obviously this weekend we will have played 12 out of 15 on the road. It’s been obvious that we haven’t played our best baseball.”
Tennessee is a chance to continue to reignite a season that was destined for greatness not too long ago and work through another weekend with a pitching rotation different than the ones fans have come to expect.
Florida right-handed starting pitcher Hudson Randall throws against William and Mary on Feb. 24. Randall did not throw last weekend due to a “tired arm,” and his status is unknown for this weekend.
