Coach Tim Walton does not announce probable starting pitchers before each game. But if he did, Hannah Rogers’ name would appear more often than not.
Since Florida defeated Alabama 8-4 on March 6, Rogers has gotten the ball 11 times in the Gators’ 16 games.
The junior right-hander has logged 70 percent of Florida’s innings in Southeastern Conference play.
Rogers says her arm does not get tired, but after pitching in all but two games during the past three-and-a-half weeks, anyone’s arm would feel fatigued.
The reason Walton keeps putting the junior out on the circle is obvious — she is clearly No. 3 Florida’s (35-3, 10-2 SEC) best pitcher. She leads the team with a 1.12 ERA — 0.66 points better than any of her fellow UF hurlers.
In SEC play, the difference between Rogers and the rest of the staff is even more drastic.
Her ERA is 0.84. The next closest is Lauren Haeger, who has an ERA of 3.68.
Florida has an .833 winning percentage in SEC play, so Walton’s strategy has worked so far. But the Gators still have another 18 games on the schedule.
Rogers leads the staff in every statistical category, but the other pitchers have not had a chance to prove themselves, especially during conference play.
Haeger has only three starts against SEC opponents.
One was a 7.2-inning outing in a 3-1 loss to No. 6 Tennessee on March 16. She gave up three runs and was saddled with the loss.
Sophomore Alyssa Bache has seen even less time in the circle. She has pitched just 5.1 innings in conference play, including four in Florida’s 8-7 win against Ole Miss on Sunday.
Before getting the ball on Sunday, she had pitched only 2.1 innings of relief since March 8. When Bache finally got to start, she was shaky with her command but pitched four scoreless innings until steady rain robbed her of her grip and footing.
Walton’s squad is a serious contender to win the SEC Tournament and make a deep run into the Women’s College World Series. But to do so, the Gators need Rogers at full strength.
Contact Adam Lichtenstein at alichtenstein@alligator.org.
Junior Hannah Rogers pitches during Florida’s 7-3 win against FSU on March 27 at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium. Rogers struck out 11 in her complete-game victory against Longwood on Saturday.
