The University of Florida baseball team ended their season Sunday, but head coach Kevin O’Sullivan has kept very busy as he will try to convince his top signees to attend UF and spurn the rich signing bonuses offered by the MLB.  His recruiting class includes anywhere from 8 to 10 of the nation’s top players depending on what rating service you look at.

Six of the sixteen signees have been projected to be selected in the top four rounds, and three of those six were taken in yesterday’s first three rounds. Some of the signees stock may have dropped on the draft boards of many general managers as they have expressed interest in attending UF over heading to the minor leagues.

OF/2B Levon Washington is a local product who attended Buchholz High School. He signed with the Gators and was selected with the 30th overall pick in the first round to the Tampa Bay Rays. That will likely fetch him a bonus in the $2-4 million range. Don’t expect Mr. Washington to don a Gator uniform any time soon. He ran the second fastest ever high school time in the 60 meters for a baseball player, only behind former P.K. Yonge standout Derrick Robinson (now in AA in the Royals system). Not to mention he has plus power, a great arm, and a solid glove. This kid is the definition of five-tool and should move up quickly through the minors.

The highest pick among Gator signees though goes to 3B Bobby Borchering from Bishop Verot HS. He was picked 16th overall in the first round by the Arizona Diamondbacks.  Billed by scouts as the best high school hitter in the draft,  Borchering can spray it to all fields and hit for power. I wouldn’t plan on seeing Borchering over at third in McKethan stadium either.

Florida signee David Holmberg, a southpaw pitcher from Port Charlotte, was selected in the third round with the 71st overall pick by the Chicago White Sox. This lefty has hit 90 MPH on the radar gun and has a wicked curveball. Of the guys drafted on day one he is most likely to attend Florida, but we may not know for a while.

Gator pitcher Billy Bullock was selected one pick before Holmberg, 70th overall, by the Minnesota Twins. Bullock had a stellar season and hit 97 MPH on the radar gun in the 9th inning vs. Miami in the regional. The word is he won’t be back for his senior year.

Notable Gator signees not selected in the first day of the draft are catcher/pitcher/1B Austin Maddox (Eagle’s View Academy), catcher Michael Zunino (Cape Coral Mariner), and lefty pitcher Brian Johnson (Cocoa Beach). Expect to see these guys drafted early in the second day in the round four to seven range.

It is interesting that Maddox wasn’t selected on day one, he is a monster who throws 96 MPH off the mound and has maybe the best pure power of anyone in the draft behind the plate. The author played against the kid in high school when he was a sophomore/junior and he hit a homerun that is probably still going off RHP Jeremy Adel who is a good pitcher (and University of Fordham signee). This guy can seriously stick it and was projected as high as the 26th pick to the Yankees. The only reason I can see he wasn’t drafted was that teams heard rumors he wanted to play at Florida. The fact that he wasn’t picked is outstanding news for O’Sullivan and the Gators.

This signing class was pretty unbelievable and it was to be expected that a few guys would drafted high. That being said, things with pretty well with a couple of guys not being taken on day one. A few guys who may have gone higher didn’t which means they have a better chance of staying. Watch out for the Gators on the diamond next year if they can reel in a few of these guys.