And that’s the uncertainty as his career progresses after he completes his term as a Gator.

The 2024 draft is out there, and while the prevailing thought on Caglianone entering the season was a mound future thanks to his high-90s velocity, his power production is hard to ignore.

“Growing up I was always like a hitter who pitched,” Caglianone said. “Coming to college, I’ve become more like a pitcher who can hit. I guess that’s what I’d say right now.”

The velocity on the mound is eye-catching. And while there have been bouts with command—he walked eight Sunday—he also had a nine-strikeout, one-walk game. When he’s locating, this is a tantalizing pitching prospect. And remember, he is working his way back after surgery kept him out last season. There’s plenty of development left to happen.

Then you watch him hit. Or, in my case, you hear him hit. That thunderous impact when his bat smashed the ball stuck with me, and the mountainous exit velocities backed that up.

So where is his future? On the mound or at the plate?

“That’s the million-dollar question,” said a grinning O’Sullivan. “It will be nice to see how it all unfolds.”

But maybe he won’t have to choose. While no one should have to live up to Shohei Ohtani’s exalted status, at least now there’s a precedent that playing both is possible.

Even if he wanted to, Caglianone can’t escape the Ohtani comparisons.

“It’s hard not to (pattern his game over Ohtani),” he said. “In Gainesville, they’ve got the ‘Jactani’ thing going on. It’s surreal. I’m not rushing anything. Especially on the pitching aspect of things, coming off Tommy John.”

Caglianone paused and looked around the emptying ballpark. His focus quickly returned, and he smiled and blurted out the answer he had originally planned…

“I plan to do both as long as I can.”

And based on what we’ve seen thus far, that may just be a long time from now.

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