Longtime Florida baseball infielder Cade Kurland will enter the transfer portal, according to Baseball America.
After four years, Kurland graduated from Florida this season and expressed that he intended to pursue professional baseball after UF’s exit in the Gainesville Regional.
Kurland was granted an extra year of eligibility under a medical waiver in 2025 after suffering a season-ending shoulder injury.
“I committed here at the end of my eighth-grade year,” Kurland said. “It’s all I’ve ever known and all I’ve ever wanted.
“I did get the medical redshirt. I want the opportunity to play pro ball.”
In 49 games this season, the second baseman batted .279 and hit seven doubles, nine home runs and 33 RBI. Kurland was a Freshman All-American, hitting 17 doubles and 17 home runs with a .297 average to help the Gators finish as national runners-up in 2023.
He started in 193 games for Florida and held a career average of .276.
Kurland’s entry to the portal appears to be a leverage move ahead of the 2026 MLB Draft, which starts on July 11 after the portal closes on June 30, which gives Kurland multiple options for his future.
Kurland’s entry into the portal helps create leverage for the upcoming draft, a source told the Sun. The move is comparable to Nick Pogue in 2022, who entered the portal after spending four years at UF. Pogue committed to Ole Miss but ultimately signed an undrafted free-agent deal.
“Injury-wise, things haven’t gone the way I would have liked,” Kurland said. “When you look back at it all, I have no regrets. I had an opportunity to go to Omaha twice and being on such a winning program over the years, like I said, there’s nowhere else I’d rather have been.”
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: Florida baseball’s Cade Kurland enters transfer portal as MLB Draft approaches
Reporting by Andrew Abadie, Gainesville Sun / The Gainesville Sun
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Andrew Abadie, Gainesville Sun | USA TODAY Network
