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D2 Baseball Pitcher of the Year commits to Florida Gators

On3 imageby: Zach Abolverdi07/17/25ZachAbolverdi
Ernesto-Lugo-Canchola-Florida-Gators
Florida transfer pitcher Ernesto Lugo-Canchola. (Northwest Nazarene Athletics)

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — The Florida Gators have reached double-digit commits in their 2025 transfer class. Thier latest addition is Northwest Nazarene left-handed pitcher Ernesto Lugo-Canchola, the D2 Baseball Pitcher of the Year.

Lugo-Canchola’s commitment to UF was first reported by Jacob Rudner of Baseball America. Lugo-Canchola is the fourth transfer pitcher for Florida, which has previously added Notre Dame RHP Ricky Reeth, Central Florida RHP Russell Sandefer and Hawaii RHP pitcher Cooper Walls as well.

The 6-foot-5, 230-pound Lugo-Canchola posted a 2.00 ERA with 103 strikeouts to 44 walks over 94.2 innings and 16 starts in 2025. He collected several accolades, including First Team All-American honors from D2 Baseball and NCBWA. In NCAA rankings, Lugo-Canchola second in wins, fifth in ERA, 10th in games started, 12th in strikeouts and 14th in WHIP.

Lugo-Canchola previously pitched at Utah and Salt Lake CC. In two seasons at Utah from 2023-2024, he made 39 appearances and tossed 66 innings, recording 56 strikeouts. He improved significantly between his first and second season, going from a 6.85 ERA in 2023 to a 3.32 ERA in 2024.

In the 2022 season at Salt Lake CC, Lugo-Canchola was named to the NJCAA All-Region 18 First Team with an 8-1 record, 1.66 ERA, and 68 strikeouts across 59.2 innings.

Lugo-Canchola marks the 10th transfer addition for the Gators. They’ve also landed Jacksonville center fielder Jaden Bastian, Columbia shortstop Sam Miller, Ole Miss infielder Ethan Surowiec, TCU catcher Karson Bowen, Lenoir-Rhyne catcher Cole Stanford and JUCO catcher AJ Malzone.

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