1 » Former Florida Gators baseball star Matt LaPorta, now a starter with the Cleveland Indians, is struggling mightily in his first full season in MLB. The two-time Southeastern Conference Player of the Year (2005, 2007) batted .254 with seven home runs and 21 RBI in 52 games his rookie season (2009) but is not coming close to that pace this year. In 20 appearances, LaPorta is hitting .214 with no homers and only a single RBI to his name. The No. 7 overall pick in the 2007 MLB Draft was expected to be a source of power in the major leagues but has yet to live up to the expectations he had garnered. Cleveland acquired LaPorta as part of the trade that sent now-New York Yankees pitcher CC Sabathia to the Milwaukee Brewers two years ago.

2 » Fellow former Florida baseball player Ben Harrison is also struggling, but he is facing a very different type of conflict. On Friday, Harrison – who is currently a free agent in the minor leagues – was suspended 100 games for violating MiLB’s drug program. He was caught buying and using amphetamines, which were outlawed in MLB beginning in 2006. During his University of Florida career, Harrison hit 40 home runs and 192 RBI, ranking him second all-time in both categories behind arguably the best player in school history, the now-retired Brad Wilkerson.

Tags: baseball, Ben Harrison, Brad Wilkerson, CC Sabathia, Cleveland Indians, Draft, Matt LaPorta, MiLB, Milwaukee Brewers, MLB, New York Yankees, Player of the Year, SEC, University of Florida

Eight former letterwinners, including Gator Greats Brad Wilkerson (baseball), Fred Taylor (football) and Brian Gay (men’s golf), were inducted into the University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame on April 9 as members of the 2010 class. The F Club and Gator Boosters, Inc. presented these honors at the Hall of Fame Banquet in the Holloway Touchdown Terrace.

According to UF, “inductees are divided into three different categories: Gator Greats, Distinguished Letterwinners and Honorary Letterwinners.” The remainder of the induction class included Gator Greats Leah Kirklin Anderson (women’s track & field), Jenny Manz Theis (volleyball) and Jason Odom (football) and Distinguished Letterwinners Laurie Burns (women’s golf) and William Freeman (men’s track & field).

More about each inductee and their individual career accomplishments after the jump.
Continue Reading » Wilkerson, Taylor inducted into 2010 Hall of Fame

Tags: baseball, Brad Wilkerson, Brian Gay, F Club, field, Fred Taylor, Gator Boosters, Gator Greats, golf, Hall of Fame, Jason Odom, Jenny Manz Theis, Laurie Burns, Leah Kirklin Anderson, track, University of Florida, volleyball, William Freeman

From time to time, OGGOA will come across a plethora of news and notes that we wish to share with our readers. In those instances, we present a special post: Gator Bites. Enjoy.

» Arguably the greatest player in the history of Florida Gators baseball, free agent Brad Wilkerson has signed a minor-league contract with the Philadelphia Phillies. He was a member of the 2010 UF Hall of Fame class, a part of the 1996 and 1998 College World Series teams, a two-time All-American, three-time All-SEC selection and the 1998 Collegiate Player of the Year. Wilkerson holds career records at Florida for batting average, RBIs, slugging percentage and walks. He played for four MLB teams from 2001-08 and won a gold medal with Team USA baseball at the 2000 Sydney Olympics.

There are seven more Gator Bites for you to check out…after the jump!
Continue Reading » Gator Bites for Wednesday, February 24

Tags: Allie Will, Ashanée Dickerson, baseball, Billy Donovan, Brad Wilkerson, Brittany Dashiell, Central District Invitational, Deanna Allen, Florida State Seminoles, Freshman Gymnast of the Week, golf, Gymnast of the Week, gymnastics, Isabelle Lendl, La Salle Explorers, lacrosse, Marika Lendl, Marissa King, Marrit Boonstra, MLB, Pensacola Junior College, Philadelphia Phillies, Ray Shipman, Sam Wyche, SEC, tennis, Tyler Murphy

Eight former letterwinners, including Gator Greats Brad Wilkerson (baseball), Fred Taylor (football) and Brian Gay (men’s golf), will be inducted into the University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame 2010 class. The F Club and Gator Boosters, Inc. announced the class on Thursday, which will receive their honors at the Hall of Fame Banquet on April 9, 2010, in the Holloway Touchdown Terrace.

According to UF, “inductees are divided into three different categories: Gator Greats, Distinguished Letterwinners and Honorary Letterwinners.” The remainder of the induction class includes Gator Greats Leah Kirklin Anderson (women’s track & field), Jenny Manz Theis (volleyball) and Jason Odom (football) and Distinguished Letterwinners Laurie Burns (women’s golf) and William Freeman (men’s track & field).

More about each inductee and their career accomplishments after the jump.

Continue Reading » Wilkerson, Taylor, Gay highlight 2010 HOF class

Tags: baseball, Brad Wilkerson, Brian Gay, F Club, Fred Taylor, Gator Boosters, golf, Hall of Fame, Jason Odom, Jenny Manz Theis, Laurie Burns, Leah Kirklin Anderson, track & field, volleyball, William Freeman