Richie Martin (Photo by Tim Casey)

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Top 25 Breakdown: No. 2 Florida

2014 Record: 40-23. RPI: 8.

Coach (Record at school): Kevin O’Sullivan (292-155, 7 years).

Postseason History: 21 regionals (active streak: 7), 8 CWS trips (last in 2012), 0 national titles.

Florida's Projected Lineup

Pos. Name, Yr. AVG/OBP/SLG HR RBI SB C J.J. Schwarz, Fr. HS—Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. 1B Peter Alonso, So. .264/.344/.376 4 32 1 2B Dalton Guthrie, Fr. HS—Venice, Fla. 3B Josh Tobias, Sr. .305/.376/.448 3 8 2 SS Richie Martin, Jr. .265/.354/.337 1 27 18 LF Harrison Bader, Jr. .337/.421/.432 2 24 13 CF Buddy Reed, So. .244/.314/.285 0 6 5 RF Logan Browning, Fr. HS—Lakeland, Fla. DH A.J. Puk, So. .222/.319/.270 0 6 0

Pos. Name, Yr. W-L ERA IP SO BB SV RHP Logan Shore, So. 7-4 2.16 95.2 68 20 20 LHP A.J. Puk, So. 5-2 3.19 42.1 46 18 1 RHP Eric Hanhold, Jr. 4-3 4.20 49.1 36 18 3 RP Taylor Lewis, Jr. Tr.—Chipola (Fla.) JC

SEE ALSO: Five Questions With Florida’s Kevin O’Sullivan

Hitting: 65. With a young lineup last year, the Gators were a scrappy offensive team that succeeded by hitting situationally and executing small ball. The core of the lineup is more physically mature now, and Florida’s offense figures to be considerably more potent. The lineup will be righthanded-heavy, with at least six righties in the lineup most days, but the slasher Browning and fellow freshman Jeremy Vasquez bring two key lefty bats, and Tobias returned to switch-hitting this fall, giving the lineup a bit more balance. Bader has been Florida’s leading hitter two years in a row, and the explosive Martin looks poised for an All-America junior year following his breakout summer in the Cape Cod League. Blue-chip freshmen Guthrie, Schwarz and C Michael Rivera are all advanced enough to make immediate impacts.

Power: 55. Alonso clobbered 18 homers in his Northwoods League MVP summer and is a strong bet to compete for the SEC home run title this spring. Schwarz also has serious righthanded power to go along with his mature offensive approach, while the long-levered Puk brings big-time lefthanded pop and an improving approach. The lanky Reed also offers intriguing raw power but is still learning how to harness it. The rest of the lineup is more line drive-oriented.

Speed: 65. The Gators don’t typically take excessive chances on the basepaths, but this roster features a trio of burners in the everyday lineup, so Florida could steal more bases than usual. Reed, Martin and Bader are all at least plus runners and will flash double-plus running times. Browning and Guthrie also bring solid speed.

Defense: 60. Though Florida is not overly experienced up the middle, it is extremely talented at those positions. Rivera has the more polished catch-and-throw skills than Schwarz, who also has soft hands and a solid arm, giving the Gators a quality tandem behind the plate. The instinctive Guthrie has smooth actions and plenty of arm strength at second base, while the quick-twitch Martin has very good range and a rifle arm at short. Bader has more experience in center field, but Reed is a true defensive standout who could push Bader to a corner. Tobias is sound at the hot corner, where he could split time with lanky freshman Christian Hicks, another strong defender.

A.J. Puk (Photo by Tim Casey)

Starting Pitching: 65. Shore established himself as a frontline Friday starter as a freshman last year, when he captured SEC Freshman of the Year honors. He is a dogged competitor with outstanding command of his three-pitch mix. Puk is less efficient but figures to rack up more strikeouts thanks to the downward angle on his 92-95 fastball and his swing-and-miss slider. He also has improved his changeup, making him a true three-pitch power lefty. Hanhold flashed premium stuff in the Cape Cod League last summer, then made some mechanical adjustments in the fall, dropping his slot a bit and focusing on pounding his sinker at the bottom of the strike zone. His 90-94 fastball and low-80s slider are both quality offerings. So. RHPs Dane Dunning and Brett Morales are the front-runners to win the No. 4 (and compete for the No. 3) starter job. Dunning has electric stuff, with a 92-94 fastball and a true slider after ditching his high school curveball. Morales pounded the zone in the fall and showed better stuff than in the spring, pitching at 90-92 with a good changeup and breaking ball.

Bullpen: 70. Florida’s pitching staff might be the deepest in the nation, which is a huge asset in the bullpen as well as the rotation. With six quality lefties (Danny Young, Bobby Poyner, Kirby Snead, Tyler Deel, Scott Moss and Browning) and six reliable righties (Lewis, Aaron Rhodes, Shaun Anderson, Alex Faedo, Mike Vinson plus Dunning or Morales) in the bullpen, Florida can easily play the matchups from the fifth inning on, reducing the strain on the starting pitching. And no team in college baseball consistently spreads out its innings among its entire pitching staff better than Florida. Lewis, a power sidewinder who can run his sinker into the low 90s, is the favorite to lead the team in saves, but Florida will close by committee as situations dictate.

Experience/Intangibles: 60. The Gators matured quicker than expected with a young team last year, winning the SEC’s regular-season title before getting upset in a home regional. Florida will still be fairly young, with 24 underclassmen on its 34-man roster. But now the ultra-talented sophomore class is seasoned and hungry, and there won’t be excessive pressure on this year’s stellar freshman class to shoulder too much of the burden. Expect big things from this unit.