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Florida outfielder Tyler Shelnut landed an ejection in the Gators‘ most recent matchup with rival Miami. The dismissal came immediately following a fourth-inning home run that put UF up 4-0.
Whether or not they believed the ejection to be warranted, Shelnut’s Gator teammates seemed to take note. Many toned down the celebrations as the game progressed, one of whom was slugger/starting pitcher Jac Caglianone.
The controversy was sparked after Shelnut’s second at-bat of the contest. The outfielder belted a Miami delivery over the left field wall, and he watched it his entire way down the first base line.
Just before rounding the bag, he launched his bat into the air. An exclamation point of sorts.
SHELLY CELLY IN MIAMI 🎉#GoGators // 📺 https://t.co/98eJMkRYDC pic.twitter.com/wGPhN248fO
— Florida Gators Baseball (@GatorsBB) March 3, 2024
His excitement would be short-lived as he was tossed upon touching home plate, ending his day early in the series finale.
Shelnut might’ve been removed from the lineup, but the fireworks wouldn’t fade for the rest of the order. Florida hit two more bombs over the second half of the game with the Gators totaling five home runs on the day.
One came from two-way star Jac Caglianone, who also happened to be the starting pitcher.
The lefty smacked a hanging breaking ball over the right field fence just an inning after his teammate’ ejection, and it seems he took notes on what NOT to do during his trip around the basepath.
You hang it, we bang it.#GoGators // 📺 https://t.co/98eJMkRYDC pic.twitter.com/NQdMrtc1YY
— Florida Gators Baseball (@GatorsBB) March 3, 2024
Notice how he didn’t take the bat with him down the first base line. He also opted to toss the bat aside rather than flip it up into the air. That approach worked much better than Shelnut’s, even with Caglianone showing a boatload of emotion.
Florida’s Jac Caglianone lifted the Gators in their 8-4 win…
His presence was a huge piece of the team’s performance – which makes that bat flip reaction all the more notable!
The home run was one of three hits on the day for the slugger as he shined both in the box and on the rubber.
Not only did he lead his squad in production at the dish, but he racked up 11 strikeouts over six scoreless innings of work to pick up the win.
The series clinching outcome was Caglianone’s first victory of the season as he improved to 1-0. He’s also hitting .478 with four dingers and 13 RBIs through Florida’s first 11 games.
His versatility and insane production have the two-way star atop MLB Draft boards. MLB.com had Caglianone coming off the board at 4th overall in its most recent mock.