Don’t blame Vickash Ramjit for Florida’s bats slumping since Southeastern Conference play began.
After beginning the season looking for a way to squeeze into the UF lineup, the junior from Miami is becoming a regular for unforeseen reasons, and the Gators aren’t complaining.
“It’s good to get Vickash out there,” Florida coach Kevin O’Sullivan said. “He was waiting patiently. I’m sure it was not easy for him the first 20 games of the year.”
Until the Gators’ trip to South Carolina on March 22, Ramjit was little more than a late-game substitution at first base — another talented casualty of No. 1 Florida’s (24-4, 6-3 SEC) prospect surplus. But heading into tonight’s road game against North Florida (17-13, 2-7 Atlantic Sun), Ramjit, who is on an offensive tear, should once again be penciled in as the starting left fielder.
When senior center fielder Tyler Thompson suffered a torn ACL against Vanderbilt on March 16, O’Sullivan was confident that freshman Justin Shafer could handle starting in left with senior Daniel Pigott shifting to center. That was until Shafer committed two errors in as many games and was subsequently benched.
On a Friday in Columbia, S.C., Ramjit got his chance.
“I had an idea (I could play left field), but I really didn’t think it would happen,” he said. “Coach prepared me for out there. He was wanting me to get out there and take [reps] when I thought I would be at first.”
When third baseman Josh Tobias fractured his hamate bone in his hand on March 23 against South Carolina, Ramjit took his spot in the eight-hole and promptly went 3 for 4 with two solo home runs. O’Sullivan started him again the next day, saying he would be “crazy” not to. Ramjit went 0 for 3 with a walk but has hit .438 in the four games since. He has added another home run and six more RBI in those games.
“It felt good to contribute a lot,” Ramjit said after a two-RBI outing against No. 2 Florida State. “I’m pretty comfortable.”
A Miami transfer, Ramjit had never played outfield for the Gators before this current stretch. He started 19 games for Florida in 2011 (14 at first base) and hit .382 but never displayed the pop he showed during preseason scrimmages this year. O’Sullivan wanted to find ways to get him on the field, but the opportunities were seldom until the string of injuries occurred.
Before the South Carolina series, Ramjit had recorded one start and was hitting .111 (1 for 9).
“Sometimes it doesn’t always go the way you want it to, but you just keep grinding it out and you keep working hard,” O’Sullivan said. “When your opportunity comes, you’ve got to be ready, and he has certainly done that for us.”
Junior transfer Vickash Ramjit has found a spot in UF’s lineup following injuries to Tyler Thompson and Josh Tobias. He has hit three home runs since March 23.
