MLB Draft Talk (July 13th 6pm EDT & July 14th 11:30am EDT)

[VolFan_stuck_in_the_901]

Chapman had a huge SO% and Bargo totally tanked the last 3-4weeks. Hard to see them taking valuable spots from talented players coming in. Too many good players to have unproductive guys playing much. I would agree with you. Reality is harsh sometimes. I was crushed not making my local tee ball team.

I genuinely hate it for both Dalton and Reese.... it's not their fault, and it's not Tony V or the staff's fault either. It is the NCAA's fault for imposing such an insanely small roster number

 

[cardvolfan]

I genuinely hate it for both Dalton and Reese.... it's not their fault, and it's not Tony V or the staff's fault either. It is the NCAA's fault for imposing such an insanely small roster number

Agreed. Tony can’t make everyone happy. He’s got some tough decisions to make going forward.

 

[taylorvol]

I think Bargo and Chapman would be great as Seniors at TN. I assume both will sign FA contracts but I’d welcome them back.

 

[NEBBDad]

Just FYI on the numbers from SEC play!

 

[cncchris33]

Whoa...that was extremely unexpected.

 

[taylorvol]

Just FYI on the numbers from SEC play!
View attachment 755607

Yes, Bargo had great SEC stats and would be a leader for the 26 squad on and off the field.

 

[taylorvol]

Here’s what I see for numbers for 26 roster:

17 returnees (counting Bargo and Chapman)
10 portal transfers
17 freshmen
=44 players.
If TN admin allows 6 DSAs, would need to get roster down to 40. Would likely mean 4 very tough decisions/convos with 4 incoming freshmen.

 

[Christian Lowe]

 

[VolFan_stuck_in_the_901]

Here’s what I see for numbers for 26 roster:

17 returnees (counting Bargo and Chapman)
10 portal transfers
17 freshmen
=44 players.
If TN admin allows 6 DSAs, would need to get roster down to 40. Would likely mean 4 very tough decisions/convos with 4 incoming freshmen.

How exactly does the DSA thing work?

 

[volz2wallz]

Here’s what I see for numbers for 26 roster:

17 returnees (counting Bargo and Chapman)
10 portal transfers
17 freshmen
=44 players.
If TN admin allows 6 DSAs, would need to get roster down to 40. Would likely mean 4 very tough decisions/convos with 4 incoming freshmen.

Or 2 non draftee's....I just don't see bargs or chappy returning I think they been recruited over...could be wrong but honestly don't see them returning...

 

[taylorvol]

How exactly does the DSA thing work?

Basically teams can award Designated Student Athlete (DSA) to players or commits who would have been cut due to new roster limitations. They don’t count against the 34 cap. I’ve heard several schools have designated 6 as DSAs.

 

[knoxvol52]

How exactly does the DSA thing work?

Kinda like a 6 player triple A. If one of your main roster players gets injured then you can add one of your 6 DSA's

 

[Sam I Am]

Just my opinion as an old ex-pro:

Bargo should go get a FA contract or Independent league deal. He is just a tough one to predict. That said, go show out young man and someone will pick ya up later. I really believe Chapman should return to UT and go for the solid year. He is very close. Very close, but jusssttttttt not there yet. But I, many scouts I spoke with, are really pulling for this kid, and really think he has a chance to show out next year and go in top 5 rounds. He was on his way this season, then it just went flat.

JMO

 

[taylorvol]

Kinda like a 6 player triple A. If one of your main roster players gets injured then you can add one of your 6 DSA's

As I understand it, they aren’t treated any different than the 34 players. They can be added to the active roster at any time, receive scholarships, but can also transfer when DSA window opens and not count towards new team’s 34 man roster. Caveat is list had to be submitted by 7/6/25 which is absurd considering MLb draft just occurred. NCAA continues to defy logic.

 

[taylorvol]

BaseVols Roster 2025 / 2026 (Updated 7/14/25)

Player	Year	Position	Bats	26 Status
2 Ariel Antigua	Soph	SS, 2B, 3B	R	Roster
8 Hunter High	Soph	UTL	Left	Roster
10 Jay Abernathy	Fr	CF, 2B	Left	Roster
14 Blake Grimmer	R Fr	3B, 1B	Left	Roster
15 Manny Marin	Fr	3B, SS, 2B	R	Roster
21 Tegun Kuhns	Fr	RHP/Weekend Starter		Roster
27 Stone Lawless	R Fr	C,1B,DH	R	Roster
30 Levi Clark	Fr	DH,1B, C	R	Roster
40 Jaxon Walker	Fr	OF	Left	Roster
41 Chris Newstrom	Fr	UTL	R	Roster
42 Brennon Seigler	Fr	OF	R	Roster
44 Nic Abraham	Fr	RHP		Roster
Anton Seibert**	Fr	RHP		Roster
Brayden Krenzel	Fr	RHP		Roster
Brandon Arvidson	R Soph	LHP		Roster
Dalton Bargo	Jr	UTL		Roster
Reese Chapman	Jr	RF		Roster
Clay Edmondson	Jr	RHP		Transfer In$. MLB Draft
Mason Estrada	Soph	RHP		Transfer In$. MLB Draft
Bo Rhudy	Soph	RHP		Transfer In
Tyler Myatt		INF		Transfer In$ (JUCO)
Matt Barr	Soph	RHP		Transfer In$ (JUCO). MLB Draft
Brady Frederick	Soph	RHP		Transfer In
Garrett Wright	Soph	C/OF		Transfer In
DJ Newman	Junior	OF/RHP		Transfer In. MLB Draft
Henry Ford	Soph	1B/OF		Transfer In$
Blaine Brown	Freshman	DH/OF/LHP		Transfer In
Landon Mack	Freshman	RHP		Transfer In
Evan Blanco	Junior	LHP		Transfer In$
Mark Hindy	Junior	LHP		Transfer In
Finley Bates	Soph	2B/SS		Transfer In

NOTES:
$ = MLB draft risk for 2026 Portal commits
17 Returnees
10 Portal Transfers IN (incl 2 JUCOs). 4 Drafted by MLB
25 Portal OUT (counting Osuna)
27 on 2026 projected Roster (Before incoming freshmen signees)
17 Incoming Freshmen Signees = 44 on roster

 

[Weezer]

I just look forward to whatever roster Tony ends up putting together. He has lots of good pieces to work with. Next season should be fun.


Also, I hate this new 34-man roster limit. Seems stupid.

 

[rockytop25]

BaseVols Roster 2025 / 2026 (Updated 7/14/25)

Player	Year	Position	Bats	26 Status
2 Ariel Antigua	Soph	SS, 2B, 3B	R	Roster
8 Hunter High	Soph	UTL	Left	Roster
10 Jay Abernathy	Fr	CF, 2B	Left	Roster
14 Blake Grimmer	R Fr	3B, 1B	Left	Roster
15 Manny Marin	Fr	3B, SS, 2B	R	Roster
21 Tegun Kuhns	Fr	RHP/Weekend Starter		Roster
27 Stone Lawless	R Fr	C,1B,DH	R	Roster
30 Levi Clark	Fr	DH,1B, C	R	Roster
40 Jaxon Walker	Fr	OF	Left	Roster
41 Chris Newstrom	Fr	UTL	R	Roster
42 Brennon Seigler	Fr	OF	R	Roster
44 Nic Abraham	Fr	RHP		Roster
Anton Seibert**	Fr	RHP		Roster
Brayden Krenzel	Fr	RHP		Roster
Brandon Arvidson	R Soph	LHP		Roster
Dalton Bargo	Jr	UTL		Roster
Reese Chapman	Jr	RF		Roster
Clay Edmondson	Jr	RHP		Transfer In$. MLB Draft
Mason Estrada	Soph	RHP		Transfer In$. MLB Draft
Bo Rhudy	Soph	RHP		Transfer In
Tyler Myatt		INF		Transfer In$ (JUCO)
Matt Barr	Soph	RHP		Transfer In$ (JUCO). MLB Draft
Brady Frederick	Soph	RHP		Transfer In
Garrett Wright	Soph	C/OF		Transfer In
DJ Newman	Junior	OF/RHP		Transfer In. MLB Draft
Henry Ford	Soph	1B/OF		Transfer In$
Blaine Brown	Freshman	DH/OF/LHP		Transfer In
Landon Mack	Freshman	RHP		Transfer In
Evan Blanco	Junior	LHP		Transfer In$
Mark Hindy	Junior	LHP		Transfer In
Finley Bates	Soph	2B/SS		Transfer In

NOTES:
$ = MLB draft risk for 2026 Portal commits
17 Returnees
10 Portal Transfers IN (incl 2 JUCOs). 4 Drafted by MLB
25 Portal OUT (counting Osuna)
27 on 2026 projected Roster (Before incoming freshmen signees)
17 Incoming Freshmen Signees = 44 on roster

Ford, Blanco, Myatt aren’t draft risks anymore. They’ll be on the team

 

[taylorvol]

Ford, Blanco, Myatt aren’t draft risks anymore. They’ll be on the team

Yep. That’s why I didn’t include them as the 4 MLB draftees. They were included as 10 portal transfers. The $ was an old designator before the draft. I left it in too show where TN dodged a bullet on the draft.

 

[THEONLYTENISEE]

Anybody got a guess on how LSU and other SEC teams did with the draft.

 

[rockytop25]

Interesting that it hasn’t come out yet if Chapman & Bargo are going to sign a UDFA contract. There’s a lot of guys announcing theirs on twitter

CTV might really be in a bind there

 

[CAVPUT]

Interesting that it hasn’t come out yet if Chapman & Bargo are going to sign a UDFA contract. There’s a lot of guys announcing theirs on twitter

CTV might really be in a bind there

How's he in a bind? Unfortunately, this is the new landscape of college sports. Hard decisions are now the norm. Just gotta see it for what it is....business. No different than a MLB manager cutting a couple of guys for younger, more talented players. Appreciate Bargo and Chapman, but if Vitello let's 'em walk, I got no problem with it.

 

[vols1024]

If Peebles comes back, he will be the catcher. Wright will start in the OF somewhere, Blaine Brown didn't come here to sit either.

Newstrom and Levi can also play the OF. I don't think it would be a 100% guarantee that Bargo starts

I don't know what happens. I can't imagine both are able to return with the numbers and the amount of players who have waited and not transferred like Abernathy, Newstrom and even a guy like Grimmer who may play 3rd which further crowds the infield which Newstrom and Jay can play.

But if Bargo wants to come back I am sure Tony would be thrilled. In SEC play Bargo hit .312 with 7 HRs and 11 doubles. He can play 3rd, LF or catch. That isn't really a guy you turn down if he wants to come back as a SR when he would in theory be in line for another bump in performance.

It is easy to dream on young guys like Jay and Newstrom. Transfers like Wright, DJ Newman and Blaine Brown. But if you can take a sure thing and get a team leader back you do it as a coach.

Jay and Newstrom- showed brief flashes but have never done it at SEC level. They have tremendous talent but we don't know how they will perform vs SEC pitching over 3 months of play.
Wright- really good but played in the MAC.
Blaine Brown- is coming from one of the worst programs in baseball in Rice that imploded over last few years.
DJ Newman- is an elite talent but he has also gotten hurt often the last year. Past summer for TeamUSA and then again this spring. He was also taken by Houston so we will see the money.

My only point is... Bargo has produced in the most elite conference. You know you are going to get a guy that goes out and bangs for you against elite pitching.

Now Chapman is different because the swing and miss is just so glaring. In SEC play he struck out like 35% of the time which isn't close to sustainable. You gamble on Reese improving and he still strikes out 70 plus times and that hurts you badly.

I think Tony will have to chose between the 2.

 

[wtmvol]

Y'all help me out here if this doesn't look quite right.

At-Risk Draft Tracker:

Brandon Arvidson: returning to UT
Blake Grimmer (UTL): returning to UT
Trent Grindlinger (C): will make it to campus
Cam Appenzeller (LHP): will make it to campus
Ethan Moore (SS): will make it to campus
Henry Ford (OF/1B): will make it to campus
Evan Hawkins (1B): will make it to campus
Tyler Myatt (UTL): will make it to campus
Evan Blanco (LHP): will make it to campus
Mark Hindy (LHP): will make it to campus
Taylor Tracey (OF/P): will make it to campus
Nathan Eisfelder (OF/3B): will make it to campus

Steele Hall: drafted 1st Round, Pick 9: gone
Billy Carlson: drafted 1st Round, Pick 10: gone
Kruz Schoolcraft (LHP): drafted 1st Round, pick 25: gone
Matt Barr (RHP): drafted 5th Round, pick 149: gone
Clay Edmondson (RHP): drafted in the 14th Round, pick 430: gone
Mason Estrada (RHP): drafted 7th Round, pick 225: I'm assuming gone at a $250K slot value (McKee says he expects to sign)
DJ Newman (P/DH): drafted in the 15th Round, pick 456: we'll see

Undrafted - haven't announced plans yet, but could potentially return:
Dalton Bargo (OF/3B)
Reese Chapman (OF)

 

[Freak]

Y'all help me out here if this doesn't look quite right.

At-Risk Draft Tracker:

Brandon Arvidson: returning to UT
Blake Grimmer (UTL): returning to UT
Trent Grindlinger (C): will make it to campus
Cam Appenzeller (LHP): will make it to campus
Ethan Moore (SS): will make it to campus
Henry Ford (OF/1B): will make it to campus
Evan Hawkins (1B): will make it to campus
Tyler Myatt (UTL): will make it to campus
Evan Blanco (LHP): will make it to campus
Mark Hindy (LHP): will make it to campus
Taylor Tracey (OF/P): will make it to campus
Nathan Eisfelder (OF/3B): will make it to campus

Steele Hall: drafted 1st Round, Pick 9: gone
Billy Carlson: drafted 1st Round, Pick 10: gone
Kruz Schoolcraft (LHP): drafted 1st Round, pick 25: gone
Matt Barr (RHP): drafted 5th Round, pick 149: gone
Clay Edmondson (RHP): drafted in the 14th Round, pick 430: gone
Mason Estrada (RHP): drafted 7th Round, pick 225: I'm assuming gone at a $250K slot value (McKee says he expects to sign)
DJ Newman (P/DH): drafted in the 15th Round, pick 456: we'll see

Undrafted - haven't announced plans yet, but could potentially return:
Dalton Bargo (OF/3B)
Reese Chapman (OF)

Thanks for doing these.

 

[taylorvol]

Y'all help me out here if this doesn't look quite right.

At-Risk Draft Tracker:

Brandon Arvidson: returning to UT
Blake Grimmer (UTL): returning to UT
Trent Grindlinger (C): will make it to campus
Cam Appenzeller (LHP): will make it to campus
Ethan Moore (SS): will make it to campus
Henry Ford (OF/1B): will make it to campus
Evan Hawkins (1B): will make it to campus
Tyler Myatt (UTL): will make it to campus
Evan Blanco (LHP): will make it to campus
Mark Hindy (LHP): will make it to campus
Taylor Tracey (OF/P): will make it to campus
Nathan Eisfelder (OF/3B): will make it to campus

Steele Hall: drafted 1st Round, Pick 9: gone
Billy Carlson: drafted 1st Round, Pick 10: gone
Kruz Schoolcraft (LHP): drafted 1st Round, pick 25: gone
Matt Barr (RHP): drafted 5th Round, pick 149: gone
Clay Edmondson (RHP): drafted in the 14th Round, pick 430: gone
Mason Estrada (RHP): drafted 7th Round, pick 225: I'm assuming gone at a $250K slot value (McKee says he expects to sign)
DJ Newman (P/DH): drafted in the 15th Round, pick 456: we'll see

Undrafted - haven't announced plans yet, but could potentially return:
Dalton Bargo (OF/3B)
Reese Chapman (OF)

Looks great to me. Still shocked that Ford, Arvidson, Bargo, and Chapman weren’t drafted.