Three Samford Players to watch against the Gators

The Florida Gators will host the Samford Bulldogs at Florida Ballpark for a three-game weekend series starting Friday night. Samford comes into the series with a 3-1 record, but are coming off an 11-9 loss to Alabama State on Tuesday.

Samford swept the UT Martin Skyhawks last weekend with lots of the production coming from their top players. Here are three Bulldogs to watch in the series against the Florida Gators.

One of the top players on the Bulldogs’ roster is their first baseman Sonny DiChiara. The Alabama native is a 6’1” 235-pound first baseman with the best power bat on their roster.

In the first four games of the season, DiChiara has been the most productive hitters for Samford. The third-year infielder is slashing .364/.588/1.000 with two home runs, four walks, and a 1.588 OPS.

DiChiara has always been a top player in the Southern Conference. As a freshman, he batted .293 with 21 home runs, 55 RBIs, and a 1.053 OPS. He also slashed .328/.378/.475 with 20 hits, two home runs, 21 RBIs, and a .854 OPS as a sophomore.

The Florida pitching staff will need to be careful while pitching to DiChiara. His raw power makes him a very dangerous hitter and one of the best run producers on the Bulldogs. Florida needs to keep the ball down in the zone and mix their pitches well when he's in the box;

The Friday night starter for the Samford Bulldogs will be their left-handed pitcher Samuel Strickland. The junior left-hander out of Alabama is coming off a strong Opening Day performance against the UT Martin Skyhawks.

In the season opener, Strickland pitched five innings allowing five hits, no runs, no walks, and six strikeouts. Samford won the game 5-3 against UT Martin.

In his collegiate career, Strickland has made 35 appearances including 34 starts. He has posted a 19-5 career record with a 2.77 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, 9.1 K/9, 5 strikeout/walk ratio, and 1.8 BB/9.

Strickland came into the season with a lot of hype as was named on Perfect Game’s Preseason All-Southern Conference Team. The 6’2” 210 left-hander is one of the best strike throwers in this draft class and will make the Gators put the ball in play in order to beat him.

Senior outfielder Ryan Crockett has started the 2021 season as the top hitter in Samford’s lineup. The 6’2” 215 pound outfielder has been productive in the bottom of the order, making Samford’s offense more difficult on opposing pitchers.

In the 2021 season, Crockett has played and started in three out of the first four games. He is currently slashing .375/.583/.375 with three hits, four free passes, three runs, and a .958 OPS.

He has been at Samford since 2017, but this has been his most productive start to a season. Crockett isn’t much of a power threat at the plate but he’s a solid contact hitter that’s going to make the defense make plays. Crockett is also a solid glove in the outfield.