By BILLY DIXON
Ouch!
Not much more to say when you lose twice to Vanderbilt in extra innings – one in 10 innings, the other in a program-record 16 – then top it off by blowing a five-run lead in the bottom of the ninth in a game where you finally started putting together some offensive production.
For Tennessee’s baseball team (19-10, 3-6), it smarts.
It has the potential to linger and define the remainder of the season.
Fortunately, Josh Elander is at the helm.
If you watched the games this past weekend, you might have heard 2023 mentioned. The Vols got swept at Missouri to open Southeastern Conference play that year. They followed with a sweep of Texas A&M. Then went on to lose two out of three in the next two series then got swept at Arkansas. Not only was that team just one game better at 4-5 at this juncture than the current 3-6 Vols, they limped to a 6-12 record.
That 2023 Tennessee team finally clicked, winning 10 of the last 12. They took the regional in dramatic fashion at Clemson and the super-regional at Southern Miss before finally running out of steam in the College World Series.
Elander was in the dugout for that team. Reese Chapman was also there. They lived the turnaround and know what it takes to make it happen again.
There are more similarities between this team and the ’23 group. That everyday lineup featured four sophomores, two juniors, and two seniors. The weekend pitching rotation featured two juniors and a sophomore. They were loaded with freshman talent coming off the bench like Kavaras Tears, Dylan Dreiling, Chapman, and AJ Russell. The core of that group went on to form the best team in college baseball history in 2024.
I’m not saying this team has the same level of talent, but the potential of making the same kind of run is certainly present.
The 2026 version of the Vols lineup features eight sophomores, two juniors, and a senior. Freshmen Trent Grindlinger and Nate Eisfelder are getting significant run and will be getting more.
On the mound, I expect we’ll see freshmen – particularly Cam Appenzeller – getting more innings to go with a slew of sophomores and juniors.
Sound familiar?
This squad has a long way to go. They’re not that team yet. But recent history suggests the opportunity is there.
Injury Update
Starting catcher Stone Lawless is going to miss significant time going forward. Lawless was hit in the face by a pitch in Sunday’s game at Vandy, suffering a break around the nose.
This will likely lead to Levi Clark taking on the bulk of responsibility behind the plate, but the Vols also have Garrett Wright, who missed the early portion of the season with a hand injury and, when he returned, most of his time has been spent in center field. Wright is a catcher by trade, however, and was the Mid-American Conference Defensive Player of the Year for Bowling Green last season. He got his first innings behind the plate in Tuesday night’s win over Austin Peay.
Grindlinger is also a highly-touted catcher. In relief of Lawless Sunday, he pounded out three hits with five RBIs and looks comfortable receiving pitches.
I’m still waiting on word from team officials about Ariel Antigua on whether he is injured or just in Elander’s doghouse. For most of the season, Antigua has either started or been a regular defensive replacement in late innings. He’s been conspicuously absent the last few games, however.
Offensive Offense
Through Saturday’s 16-inning heartbreaker in Nashville, the Vols’ offense continued to struggle. They went scoreless in 15 of the 16 innings. They failed to cross the plate in eight of 10 innings Friday.
A couple of things really stood out to me and I had my notes ready for this column. Through two and half at bats Sunday, it was holding true. I was screaming at the TV in the top of the first after Blaine Brown walked on four pitches and the first offering to Henry Ford missed badly. Then Ford swung at a curveball in the dirt. That’s a baseball cardinal sin.
Tennessee hitters’ pitch selection has been awful and I’m not sure it’s anything that can be coached. When you clearly have the ability, but continue to have poor at bat after at bat, it’s a confidence thing. All year this team has consistently watched pitches right down the middle – grooved fastballs and hanging curves. That leads to chasing bad pitches for strike two. Ultimately, the end result is a ton of weak flyouts and routine grounders.
The opposite can also be true. Manny Marin is seeing an average of three pitches per at bat. When opponents know you are uber aggressive at the plate, they’re going to tempt you to chase.
It comes down to focus and concentration – having a purpose for each AB before you step in the box. We’ve seen these individuals hit well. It’ll come.
The second problem I’ve noticed at the plate can be fixed with coaching. In fact, the last two games we saw marked improvement.
They HAVE to stop hitting in the shift.
Personally, I hate the shift and think Major League Baseball got it right in banning the practice. Nobody wants to pay good money to see great hitters bunting time after time or trying to slap a ball the opposite way just to “hit it where they ain’t.”
But currently the shift is legal in college baseball. When you’re struggling as badly as Tennessee has been offensively, if the opponent is going to give you a gap the size of Rhode Island on one side of the field, bunt it there as many consecutive times as it takes to get them to play you straight up. Purposefully attempt to take pitches the other way. When a third baseman is playing two steps off second base against left-handed hitters, you should have as many bunt double as you do outs.
We saw that light bulb go off over Vols hitters’ heads Sunday, in particular with Brown and Grindlinger who had three opposite field hits each. In Tuesday’s mid-week game, we saw more of it, including multiple bunt attempts.
It’s almost like Elander knows what he’s doing. Imagine that.
Mid-Week Perfection
The Vols kept their mid-week record perfect on Tuesday with a 13-4 win over Austin Peay.
That makes Tennessee 8-0 in the mid-week with six more to go.
These games continue to be a struggle for other SEC teams with Auburn, Florida, Arkansas, and Missouri losing Tuesday night. To be fair, Auburn’s loss was to No. 5 Georgia Tech. Ole Miss, Georgia, Kentucky, and Texas needed late rallies to pull off wins.
Coming Up
Two teams in desperate need of a series win square off this weekend at Lindsey Nelson Stadium when the LSU Tigers come calling.
The Tigers (20-10, 4-5) needed a late-inning Sunday rally to take the series from Kentucky last week. Prior to that, they had lost two of three to Oklahoma, Vandy, and Sacramento State (in their last non-conference series).
LSU has struggled to score at times this year but have crossed the plate 59 times in their last five games. They’re hitting .291 as a team, led by Jake Brown (.356) and Derek Curiel (.345). Brown leads the way with 11 home runs. Much like Tennessee, the Tigers’ power numbers are down slightly, with only 45 long balls. That’s the same number as the Vols.
On the mound, LSU is 14th in the SEC with a 4.76 ERA. That didn’t mean much for the Vols through two games last week against then last-place Vandy.
The Vols will likely see Casan Evans (2-1, 5.00 ERA) and William Schmidt (4-1, 2.55 ERA). The Sunday starter is up in the air.
As for Tennessee, we got a surprise last week when the weekend rotation from the entire season was disrupted. Brandon Arvidson got the start Friday night instead of Tegan Kuhns – who came on in relief. Despite the loss, both looked good. At some point, we might see Appenzeller get a start. He’s been simply fantastic in relief, sporting a 1.37 ERA in nine appearances and 26.1 innings.
First pitch Friday is set for 5:30 on the SEC Network. They take the field at 6:00 Saturday on ESPN2, and 1:00 Sunday on SEC+.