Florida’s 2020 baseball recruiting class has lost some signees during and after the MLB Draft.
The class is ranked seventh in the nation, according to Perfect Game. UF has 14 commits, including six ranked inside the top 100. One of those incoming freshmen will be Chase Centala.
“It feels amazing,” Centala said about officially becoming a Gator. “It’s something I’ve been waiting for a long time and it has finally happened.”
Chase Centala is a 6-foot-1, 185-pound right-handed pitcher out of Sickles High School in Tampa, Fla. On Perfect Game, Centala is the 500th-ranked prospect and 214th-ranked right-handed pitcher nationally. He’s also the 106th-ranked prospect and 30th-ranked right-handed pitcher in Florida.
Centala was pledged to another program prior to joining UF’s class.
“My recruiting process was very interesting and different compared to other recruits,” Centala told Gators Territory. “I was a USF commit in the beginning, then some things happened and I decided to decommit.”
Centala received eight offers from some of the top baseball programs, such as Florida, Florida State, Mississippi State, North Carolina and NC State.
The Gators started standing out to the Tampa native after he reopened his recruitment.
“Florida offered me a couple of weeks after I made my decommitment,” Centala told GT. “Coach [Chuck] Jeroloman was the first to call me and asked if I was interested.”
Once Centala expressed his interest to Jeroloman, he received a call from UF head coach Kevin O’Sullivan.
“A little after my conversation with Coach Jeroloman, Coach O’Sullivan called and offered me,” said Centala. “He talked about their baseball history and the amount of success they’ve had getting pitchers to the MLB.”
A few days after landing the offer from O’Sullivan, he cut his list down to a final three of Florida, FSU and North Carolina. The in-state Gators beat out the ACC programs and Centala put pen to paper shortly after his commitment.
“It was an amazing feeling knowing that I get to continue my dream at one of the best schools in the country,” Centala said. “I’m very happy with my choice.”
During his high school career, Centala had an 18-4 record with a 1.92 ERA. He also pitched 138.1 innings while striking out 159 batters, walking 41 with a 27.2 K% and a 10.4 K/9.
Without much of a senior season due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Centala has spent the long offseason improving himself.
“I’ve been working out every day,” he told GT. “And I’m trying to eat right so I’m in the best shape when I get on campus.”
