It should be noted that Bargo is hitting .429 with 5 homers. This team desperately needs upper classman leadership. Huge strategic error letting him go. And they absolutely let him go. I get the limited rosters, but you can’t cut loose a guy that can start at four different positions and hit 14 HRs.
Since
@Freak wouldn’t hire me
, I wrote about that very topic and UT’s inexperience and offensive struggles in a guest blog
The Tony Basilio Show (See TWIB (Taylor’s Week in BaseVols) near bottom of blog).
If you don’t want to read the whole blog, here’s a small part of my guest blog below…
“How’s Bargo doing at NC State? Well, Bargo’s already hit 5 HRs, batting .371, 1.254 OPS, .829 Slugging %, .429 OBP, and 14 RBIs in only 9 games at NC State. (He missed a few games due to a strained quad sliding into 2B, but hit a massive HR/#BargoBOMB during his first AB back). Heck, even in 7 less games played, he would be tied with Ford and Brown as Vol leaders in HRs and only one RBI off the before mentioned dynamic transfer duo in RBIs. Furthermore, his new head coach (Coach Avent is celebrating his 30th year at NC State so this isn’t his first rodeo) raves about Bargo’s leadership and veteran presence in the clubhouse and dugout. The BaseVols could certainly use more of that!”
Taylor's Week in BaseVols
'Bottom Line ... you just don’t win at a high level in college baseball with youth and inexperience. According to D1 Baseball,
Tennessee is 13th in experience in the SEC and 167th out of about 300 college baseball programs.
It’s no coincidence that UCLA is ranked #1 in experience as evidenced by their exceptional play, and if you watched last Friday’s game in Arlington where they dominated our BaseVols. A solid core of returning veterans plus some key portal additions is the winning formula to have a successful postseason run. Why not rely on top 100 freshmen and sophomores? Well, too many “Showcase” freshmen and sophomores are still learning how to win as a team vs “going for the launch angle and big stats” in Travel Ball/Perfect Game tournaments. They seemingly get tight in midweek games and even stud “draft eligible” sophomores tend to get “wide-eyed” and allow the game to “speed up” on them even on non conference weekend series—much less in uber competitive SEC series.
The reality is the majority of underclassmen just aren’t ready to compete at a consistently high level in the SEC. Sure, there’s always an exception as UT won a National Championship with a true freshman at SS. Of course, he was surrounded by experienced veterans who didn’t wilt under the bright lights in SEC play, and certainly not in Omaha!
This inexperienced 2026 Tennessee squad had a chance to bring back another senior experienced veteran bat (who by the way can play five different positions) yet decided to ride with inexperienced freshmen and sophomores.It’s inexplicable to me that coach Tony Vols did not use a spot for Dalton Bargo. And no, I don’t buy that reduced scholarship nonsense as Tennessee used up to six DSA‘s to essentially have a roster of 40 for the 2026 season.
How anemic has the BaseVols’ offense been? Well after 16 games and almost 30% of the regular season already over, UT’s offensive stats compared to the rest of the SEC are….OFFENSIVE! Keep in mind, there are now 16 teams in the SEC so UT is performing at the very bottom of the SEC in several key hitting metrics against mostly inferior non-conference opponents (exceptions being UCLA, AZ St, and VT).
Metric .. Result .. SEC Ranking
Batting Average .268 16th (LAST)
Runs Scored 95 16th (LAST)
Hits. 137 16th (LAST)
OB%. 374 15th (Almost LAST)
Slugging %. 479 14th (Still Awful)
RBIs. 89 16th (LAST)
Home runs. 22 11th
Total Bases. 245 15th (Next to LAST)
Walks. 71 14th
Strikeouts. 105 12th
Source: SEC Sports (updated as of 3/9/26)
On the positive side, UT ranks 5th in Fielding Percentage at .981. And, the season is still relatively young so lots of room for improvement on the offensive side! So would Bargo make a difference? During 2025 SEC games, Bargo was one of the top hitters for TN in virtually every offensive category. Sure, Bargo struggled in 2025 postseason play but was a top hitter for UT in SEC play. According to UT Sports:
Dalton Bargo 2025 SEC Games:
.312 in BA (3rd)
.988 in OPS (2nd)
24 in Runs (3rd)
11 Doubles (1st)
7 HRs (3rd)
22 RBIs (3rd)
.624 Slugging (2nd)
How’s Bargo doing at NC State? Well, Bargo’s already hit 5 HRs, batting .371, 1.254 OPS, .829 Slugging %, .429 OBP, and 14 RBIs in only 9 games at NC State. (He missed a few games due to a strained quad sliding into 2B, but hit a massive HR/#BargoBOMB during his first AB back). Heck, even in 7 less games played, he would be tied with Ford and Brown as Vol leaders in HRs and only one RBI off the before mentioned dynamic transfer duo in RBIs. Furthermore, his new head coach (Coach Avent is celebrating his 30th year at NC State so this isn’t his first rodeo) raves about Bargo’s leadership and veteran presence in the clubhouse and dugout. The BaseVols could certainly use more of that!
Per recent history, the BaseVols nailed the portal by acquiring studs like Ford, Brown, Wright, Mack, and Frederick. So why did the BaseVols pass on the returning vet from Omaha? Wasn’t losing Hunter Ensley, Gavin Kilen, Andrew Fischer, Cannon Peebles, and Dean Curley enough? Did they think they could win by likely starting 4 or 5 Sophomores in the everyday lineup? BTW, 4 of those “super sophomores” combined for 0-30 at the plate during the recent Wright St series. Much like starting that game at LNS during a brutal thunderstorm vs Auburn, Tony Vols simply made a mistake. How big? Let’s check back in a couple of months…. I personally think the 2026 BaseVols could really use some more veterans and Bargo Bombs if they want to experience a postseason of consequence. GBO!
Taylor'
