Carlton Dominates As FSU Upends Host Gators

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GAINESVILLE, Fla.—Florida State righthander Drew Carlton said he knew as early as when he was warming up in the bullpen Saturday that he was feeling good. Everyone else quickly came to understand just how good Carlton was feeling when he got on the mound at McKethan Stadium to face Florida, the No. 1 national seed, in the opening game of their super regional.

Carlton threw a two-hit shutout and retired the final 19 batters he faced to lead Florida State to a 3-0 victory against Florida. The Seminoles grabbed the early edge in the best-of-three series and are now just one win away from advancing to the College World Series for the first time since 2012.

“Everything felt great in the bullpen,” Carlton said. “Every inning was just coming back and looking back at the last inning and feeding off that and trying to add that to the next inning.”

Carlton did not allow a runner to advance past first base and faced just one more than the minimum in his first career shutout. Florida center fielder Buddy Reed, drafted in the second round by the Padres on Thursday, singled in the second inning, but advanced no further. Left fielder Danny Reyes singled the next inning, but was quickly erased on an inning-ending double play. No other Gator would reach base the rest of the night.

Longtime Florida State coach Mike Martin said it was the best he had ever seen Carlton pitched. But when asked when the last time he had seen a Seminole deliver such an impressive performance, especially when considering the stage and opponent, Martin was stumped.

“I can’t say I remember this or I remember that,” Martin said. “The guy pitched his heart out. He threw to location, he used both sides of the plate, he had the slider and the change going for him.

“It was a game in which a lot of things went our way. I’m very proud of what we accomplished. But I just know it’s a long way from being over.”

Florida State will have to find a way to win one of the next two games to get back to Omaha. Florida has only lost one series at home this season, coming at the hands of the Southeastern Conference champions Mississippi State. And, before Saturday, the Gators had won five straight games against the Seminoles, a streak that stretched back to last year’s super regional matchup between the two teams that Florida swept in Gainesville.

So it was difficult for Martin to get too excited about the Game One victory, even as well as Carlton pitched. And the sophomore righthander was fantastic.

On a hot, humid night, he worked efficiently enough to throw a complete game in 115 pitches. He struck out five batters and induced 12 groundballs that turned into outs. With the victory, he improved to 8-3, 3.94 this season.

Carlton said it was important for him to keep the ball low in the zone to create those groundballs.

“They’re definitely a team that feeds off of stuff up in the zone,” Carlton said. “Staying down, having them roll groundballs for my defense was a big key for my success tonight.”

Carlton is not an overpowering pitcher. His fastball typically sits around 90 mph with good sink, and he can mix in a quality slider and changeup. But on Saturday, the Gators were unable to get anything going at the plate. They hit a few balls hard, but Florida State’s defense made the plays. Center fielder Ben DeLuzio made a superb diving catch to rob extra bases from J.J. Schwarz in the seventh, and the infield gobbled up groundball after groundball.

Florida coach Kevin O’Sullivan praised Carlton’s performance.

“He threw great—two-hit shutout, no walks, pitched ahead in the count the entire night and really commanded his fastball,” O’Sullivan said. “He did a really nice job.”

Florida State put together enough offense of its own against Florida’s exceptional pitching staff, which led the nation in ERA this year. Righthander Alex Faedo walked in a run in the fourth, and the Seminoles scratched out two more runs in the fifth on a leadoff single from Matt Henderson and an RBI double from All-American shortstop Taylor Walls. The sophomore moved up to third on a sacrifice and was alertly was able to score when second baseman Deacon Liput wasn’t able to hang onto the throw to first base.

Three runs proved to be more than enough for Carlton on Saturday, as he led Florida State to its first shutout against its in-state rival since 1995.

Carlton said he was glad to be able to finish the game, and win such an important game for the Seminoles.

“That was definitely one of the most fun games I’ve ever pitched in and I definitely wanted that one,” Carlton said. “That was a big one for us, this whole team.”