Schuster: 'I really loved it at Florida'

Patrick Schuster wants to make one thing clear - he has nothing against the University of Florida or the Gator baseball program.

The high school phenom who threw four consecutive no-hitters signed with Arizona after spending a few weeks in summer school at UF. Schuster received a signing bonus of $450,000, which is more like third-round money than the 13th round in which he was drafted.

Schuster, a left-hander who signed with Florida, told the Arizona Republic he took classes to put pressure on the Diamondbacks.

“I got there and, you know what, I don’t like being treated like I’m stupid,” he told the newspaper. “I went to a good university, a good teaching institution, and they treated me like a dumb jock. I didn’t appreciate it. I didn’t like it. As soon as I got the phone call that said they (the Diamondbacks) got me my money, I packed up and left as soon as they told me. I was ready to go on Thursday and ready to come here.”

But Schuster told The Sun on Wednesday that the quotes were blown out of proportion.

"What happened was that I wanted a major and couldn't get it because of baseball," Schuster said. "It was irritating. But I really loved it at Florida. I loved the guys on the team. Sully (UF coach Kevin O'Sullivan) is the reason I went to Florida. Sully is great. The program is the reason I went to Florida. That's a great program.

"I did feel like I was treated differently because I was an athlete. But that's not why I left."

Florida is still waiting on several drafted signees and returning players to make up their minds. The deadline is Aug. 17.