Caden McDonald will tell you that organic chemistry is much harder than baseball.
“Honestly, yeah, kind of,” said McDonald, who is premed. “It’s pretty tough.”
The Florida baseball two-way star player, who just a few weeks ago had a study session interrupted by learning he was in the starting lineup, happily told the media that he passed organic chemistry after throwing four hitless innings and hitting a home run in Florida’s 9-6 win over Kentucky on Sunday, May 10.
“I got a C+, which some of those classes are pretty tough,” McDonald said. “You need a C to pass, so I’ll take a C+ all day long.”
To back McDonald’s enthusiasm, the Gators head coach, Kevin O’Sullivan, who was also originally a premed major, admitted that he failed the same class back in college.
“I was premed, and I couldn’t pass organic chem,” said a laughing O’Sullivan. “I know how difficult that is. He’s as well-rounded as you are going to see as far as a teammate, human being. He kind of checks all the boxes.”
Oddly enough, the redshirt sophomore almost never stepped foot on campus as he was originally signed to UCF.
“After my senior season (of high school), I had a good year, but the head coach got fired,” McDonald said. “Then you can get out of your letter intent, and I decided to change the course. It happened really quickly in a span of a week. This was my dream school. I always wanted to come here.”
Just a week ago, McDonald became the third player in Florida’s history to throw at least three scoreless innings, record the win and hit a home run in a single game since at least 2010. McDonald how now accomplished the feat twice.
In a 10-game span, McDonald has gone from a feel-good story to an imperative part of the team. In that stretch, he is 16-for-40 with 14 RBIs, four doubles and five home runs, which included a go-ahead long ball in the fourth inning against the Wildcats.
For McDonald, the biggest difference as a hitter is having the chance to start in the lineup as compared to pinch-hitting at-bats.
“Starting a game in the lineup and pinch-hitting are two very different things,” McDonald said. “I feel like pinch hitting is tough to get kind of get in that groove after sitting down the whole game. Being able to start a game and prepare for that all through pregame makes your state of mind a lot better.”
With the game tied, McDonald had previously struck out the night before against Kentucky’s reliever. Facing a 2-0 count, it began to rain mid-at-bat.
“I struggled against that guy the other night, too, on Friday,” McDonald said. “I wasn’t seeing him very well, but he got me into a hitter’s count at 2-0. He just left one over the plate, and I put a good swing on it. I was trying not to think about the rain and the drips coming off my helmet. I was just able to put a good swing on it.”
On the mound, McDonald did not allow a run or a hit and struck out six batters in 4.1 innings in 49 pitches.
“It’s insane,” said Florida shortstop Brendan Lawson of McDonald. “He fills up the zone with three to four pitches. You can see it with the Kentucky hitters. He was on them right from the jump. He put them away with two strikes and eliminated a lot of hard contact. When you are constantly ahead in counts, it’s easier to have success.”
This season, out of the bullpen, McDonald holds a 2.87 ERA and a 0.98 WHIP, striking out 38 batters and walking six in 16 appearances.
“I’m going to keep trying to be me,” McDonald said. “It’s just working out right now. I’m just going to keep trying to do what I’m doing.”
Reach Florida Gators writer Andrew Abadie at AAbadie@usatodayco.com or on X (formerly Twitter) at @AndrewAbadie. You can also find him on Facebook at Andrew Abadie Sports Reporter or on Instagram @andrewabadie_sports.
This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Home runs, strikeouts and organic chemistry: Caden McDonald does it all at Florida baseball
Reporting by Andrew Abadie, Gainesville Sun / The Gainesville Sun
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
