Link to Article on The Red & Black
By Olivia Sayer
Georgia redshirt sophomore Charlie Condon (24) hits the ball during a NCAA college baseball game between UNC Asheville and Georgia at Foley Field in Athens, Georgia, on Friday, Feb. 16, 2024. Georgia won 11-2. (Photo/Mady Mertens: @MadyMertensPhotography)
It’s not often that two of the top three MLB Draft prospects share the field together, much less in the regular season. Georgia baseball’s series against Florida, however, was the exception, as MLB.com’s No. 1 and No. 3 prospects Charlie Condon and Jac Caglianone shared the diamond at Foley Field. The two sluggers and former teammates are having historical collegiate seasons.
Condon and Caglianone know each other well, as they developed a strong relationship as teammates on USA Baseball’s Collegiate National Team this past offseason.
“I talked to him a lot last year at our series in Gainesville,” Condon said. “ We got really tight this summer, just playing with Team USA in those three or four weeks together.”
Condon said they were also supposed to be on the same Cape Cod team, but due to Florida’s deep College World Series run, Caglianone went straight to Team USA instead.
Condon broke Caglianone’s record of most home runs in a single season in the BBCOR-era earlier this year. When his record fell, Caglianone reached out to his friend and former teammate.
“It’s all really nice, light hearted and some casual jokes,” Condon said. “But it’s all in good fun.”
In general, Condon said his conversations with Caglianone are “not a lot of baseball.” However, with their teams facing off, the sport has made its way into recent discussions.
In the series, many eyes will be on Condon and Caglianone, as multiple MLB scouts were reportedly in attendance for Thursday’s series-opening game. Both can do damage on a variety of pitches, if they are given the chance to swing the bat.
“Hopefully not too many intentional walks,” head coach Wes Johnson said earlier this week when asked what fans can expect from the two sluggers.
Condon and Caglianone are no strangers to intentional walks, as both were given a free pass in game one. Condon entered the series with 22 intentional walks, while Caglianone was not far behind with 18.
The free bases are well-earned, as Condon and Caglianone are widely regarded as two of the top-hitters in the game.
“Charlie, in my opinion, and I can back it up objectively, is the best player in college baseball this year,” Johnson said. “You’re looking at, in my opinion, probably the top two players in college baseball are gonna square off this weekend. So that will be a lot of fun.”
Condon currently leads the nation in batting average, home runs, total bases and slugging percentage. The redshirt-sophomore is the only hitter in college baseball slugging at least 1,000. In Thursday’s series-opening victory over Florida, Condon extended his hitting streak to 22 games.
Caglianone is having a solid season in his own right. The junior is second in the NCAA in home runs and set the record for most consecutive games with a long ball. Caglianone entered Thursday’s contest with a 30-game hitting streak, but the Bulldogs snapped it in four plate appearances.
Both Condon and Caglianone have their respective programs’ record for most home runs in a single season, while Condon also has the most career home runs at Georgia.
Condon almost tied Caglianone’s consecutive games with a home run record, but an intentional walk in his last plate appearance left him one homer shy. Condon did break Caglianone’s single-season home runs in the BBCOR-era record in 24 less games.
Caglianone will have a chance to disrupt Condon’s offensive success in Saturday’s series finale, when he takes the mound.
This season, the Gator leads Florida starters with a 4.07 ERA and is 5-1 in 12 games as a starting pitcher. On days he throws, he also serves as the designated hitter. His performance made him a finalist for the John Olerud Two-Way Player of the Year Award.
“He’s obviously really good,” Condon said of stepping into the batter’s box against Caglianone. “He’s a high [velocity] pitcher and has been a lot better with his off-speed command recently. You got to be ready to get in the box and do damage from the first pitch to the last pitch of every at-bat. Can’t take a pitch off against a guy that’s that good.”
Georgia and Florida are in much different places this season. The Bulldogs are looking to secure a national seed in the NCAA Tournament, while Thursday’s loss dropped the Gators below .500, a season after appearing in the finals of the College World Series.
While baseball is a team game, many will pay close attention to the talent that Condon and Caglianone put on display this weekend.