Gators Baseball Grabs a Pair of Commitments from Transfer Portal

The Florida Gators tapped into the transfer portal to add a pair of commitments including a freshman from Texas Tech.

Texas Tech infielder Landon Stripling is reportedly transferring to the Florida Gators. / Annie Rice/Avalanche-Journal / USA TODAY

After winning on the field this past weekend to advance onto the NCAA Super Regionals against the Clemson Tigers, the Florida Gators took two major wins off the field this week as well. 

Florida landed commitments from two infielders on Wednesday night with Jacksonville University’s Justin Nadeau and Texas Tech’s Landon Stripling joining the Gators next season. 

Nadeau joins the Gators after just two seasons with the Jacksonville Dolphins, first reported byOn3’s Nick De La Torre. 

During his time with the Dolphins, Nadeau had a career batting average of .332, .482 on-base percentage and 58 RBI in 79 games (78 starts). 

He slashed .294 AVG/.385 OBP/.376 SLG% in his debut season with Jacksonville where he started all 49 games. 

In this freshman campaign, Nadeau finished third on the team in batting average, tied for third in hits and fourth in on-base percentage. He was second on the team with 17 multi-hit games and seven multi-RBI games. Also, he was the first JU freshman to reach the 30 RBI mark since 2010.

He followed this impressive freshman season by upping his batting average, on-base percentage and slugging significantly. In just 30 games played, he slashed .395/.482/.521 and drove in 28 runs.

A big get for the Gators considering who they are losing after this season, because he also played two games at first base.

He could potentially slide into that spot when Jac Caglianone departs, but the Gators could shift around their infield if they feel he is better fielder than Kurland at second. 

The other commitment on Wednesday was 6-foot, 195-pound freshman infielder Landon Stripling, who is transferring from Texas Tech, first reported by Red Raider Sports’ Justin Apodaca. 

He stayed true to his commitment and signed with Texas Tech coming out of high school but has opted to leave after just one year in Lubbock. 

During his freshman year with the Red Raiders, Stripling slashed .253/.361/.404 in 33 (24 starts) total games played. Additionally, he had four homeruns and 20 RBI. 

His best outing this season came back in February when he went 5-for-7 with two homers and seven RBI against Texas Southern. 

Coming out of high school, Stripling was rated as the 76th overall prospect and 24th second baseman in the 2023 Perfect Game rankings. Moreover, he was labeled as the eighth best player in the state of Georgia. 

Stripling attended Parkview (Ga.) High School where he had a career batting average of .422 and 83 RBI over four seasons. Moreover, he held an impressive .430 batting average, 45 RBI and launched 13 homers in his senior year. 

He was not just a hitter either. He was tabbed as the Gwinnett County Pitcher of the Year in 2022-2023. During that season, he won 10 games and had 12 starts while posting a 1.55 ERA. 

While he did play his high school baseball in Georgia, he was born in Winter Haven, Fla., which makes sense as to why he has opted to return to the Sunshine State. 

Now, it is hard to say where Stripling will fit in instantly given that the Gators have Cade Kurland as their everyday second baseman and the addition of Nadeau. 

He served as the designated hitter and platooned as the first baseman for the Red Raiders last season.

Florida will most likely be losing Colby Shelton to the draft and Tyler Shelnut, Dale Thomas to eligibility, which means that the left side of the infield will be vacant going into next season. 

With three of the four infield positions being open, Stripling can help fill either of the corners or play second base depending on how head coach Kevin O’Sullivan wants to set his infield. 

Overall, these are two great additions and the Gators are attacking the portal early to address inevitable attrition after the season..