This Week in BaseVols (TWIB)

[txbo]

I think UT takes 2-3 and wins the series on the road in OK. Playing at Bricktown will feel like a neutral site but will obviously count as a road series for RPI purposes. It will be interesting who starts game 3 for the Vols as I’m assuming Mack will not be a go.


PS My daughter is graduating from UT or I would be there. I can’t believe how fast the time has gone!

Time flies. They are gone before you know it. Congrats to your little girl. Celebrate.

 

[taylorvol]

This Week in BaseVols (TWIB)

5/19/26

BaseVols Take OK Series
The #23 BaseVols won the Series by taking 2 out of 3 from the Oklahoma Sooners in OKC in front of a sparse crowd at the AAA ballpark (Chickasaw Bricktown) of the LA Dodgers. The Vols were lead by super Senior Reese Chapman (.462 at 6 for 15 with 2 doubles, 5 runs scored, and 4 RBIs), Manny Marin (.500 at 3 for 6 with a double, a triple, and 4 RBIs all in the first 2 games as he was held out for a minor injury for game 3), and Henry Ford (.364 at 4 for 11 with a double, 2 HRs, 4 runs scored, and 3 RBIs). Unfortunately, the hot hitting senior leader, Reese Chapman, was struck by a line drive in the jaw during practice activities in Hoover and will likely be out of action for the foreseeable future. Let’s hope Chapman is alright for the long term and recovers quickly as this is a huge loss for the Vols and has to be hugely disappointing for Chapman and his family. Starting Pitcher Landon Mack is traveling to Hoover for the SEC tournament but likely doubtful to pitch. Personally, I’d be surprised if we Mack on the mound for the remainder of the season. Ironically, the Vols have been healthy for the majority of the season, but are now experiencing injuries at the worst possible time. If Mack and Chapman aren’t back for the Regionals, it will put the Vols at a huge disadvantage.

On the downside, Garrett Wright (.154 with a .250 OBP), Trent Grindlinger (.143 with a .200 OBP), and Stone Lawless (.000 with a 0-6 in only 2 games) really struggled at the plate in OKC. If the Vols have any hopes for success in the postseason (especially without Reese Chapman and Landon Mack) these 3 need to heat back up quickly. With Chapman out, the Vols inserted freshman Nathan Eisfelder at RF, moved Blake Grimmer to 1B, inserted Jay Abernathy at 2B, and moved Levi Clark to C.

Despite leading the nation in fielding percentage, the Vols struggled defensively on the natural grass and dirt surface at Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark in OKC fielding a paltry .947 with 6 errors for the Series. Make no mistake, the true hops on the artificial surface in Knoxville is much easier on infielders than the natural playing surfaces in OKC, Hoover, and Omaha. Blake Grimmer was officially charged with 2 errors but easily could have had one more, but the college official scoring system seemingly grades on a generous defensive curve turning “would be” errors into hits. The bottom fielding percentages for the Series belonged to 2B Grimmer at .846, SS Ariel Antigua at .875, and 3B Henry Ford at .889. Hopefully, the series in OKC was an outlier and not indicative of how the Vols will play defensively on natural playing surfaces in Hoover or potentially in the Regionals or Supers.



The ABS (Automated Ball-Strike) umpire challenge system is being used for the first time in Hoover for the SEC Tournament. I can’t wait to see how this plays out as each team will obtain 3 challenges per game obtained by a quick tap of the headgear within 2-3 seconds of the pitch. Only the pitcher, batter, or catcher can initiate a challenge. Here’s hoping that ABS becomes standard in the SEC (and the rest of college baseball) next season for the teams that have the Hawk-Eye technology. For the ones that don’t, perhaps that will serve as motivation to obtain it.

I have found it interesting how Tennessee coaches currently receive feedback from the catcher on a questionable ball or strike call. From what I have noticed, they simply ask the catcher “where was it” and the catcher will simply motion with his hand up, down, outside, or inside or he will touch his chest to indicate that it was a strike. In the past, some UT catchers had a method to provide this feedback covertly with the manner in which they would throw the ball back to the pitcher. Personally, I liked this method much better because it didn’t alienate the catcher from the home plate umpire and gave the coaches the feedback they requested in a much more covert way. Perhaps ABS will improve calling balls and strikes moving forward and it will likely reduce dugout chirping.

Status of Tennessee Pitching Staff
As of now, I think the Vols currently have 5 or 6 reliable pitchers including Tegan Kuhns, Evan Blanco, Brandon Arvidson, Bo Rhudy, Nic Abraham, and Cam Appenzeller. After last night’s performance against SC, I think you can add freshman Will Haas to that list. Unfortunately, despite a 97 mph heater and a frisbee slider and elite talent, Brayden Krenzel looks like he could use a few months off. His ceiling is first round talent, but his floor is ending his baseball career at Ohio State. If Landon Mack is healthy OR if his adviisors allow him to pitch, I’d certainly include him on this list. Without Mack, UT looks like a short stay in the postseason unless they find some bullpen magic. On the positive side, there are several talented freshmen who have gained some valuable experience and will look much better on the mound next season.

Grading the Regular Season
When the season started, I proclaimed this team wasn’t a postseason contender due to their youth and inexperience (167th in the country and 13th in the SEC In returning production as measured by D1 Baseball). Considering this and the coaching attrition (Head Coach, Pitching Coach, Strength/Conditioning Coach, and Scouting Director), I would grade UT’s regular season as a solid B. Coach Elander calmed the storm, proved adaptable, and led with a steady hand and an “even keel” demeanor. He made adjustments to the lineup and pitching rotation when necessary but stayed loyal to high ceiling players like Levi Clark and Tegan Kuhns which paid off in spades. UT’s hitting has come on strong, the defense has the best fielding percentage in the nation, but the bullpen has been dreadful. Although dealing with the press isn’t on his list of favorite activities, Coach Elander was refreshingly more candid and direct than I expected. He’s much more of a straight shooter than I expected, but he needs to increase his fan and media exposure next season.

Hoover Heroics:
The Vols beat down the SC Gamecocks 11-6 on a warm Tuesday evening in Hoover, Alabama. Freshman Cam Appenzeller earned the win by going 5 innings and giving up 6 hits, 3 runs, 5 strikeouts, and 3 walks. Fellow freshman Will Haas got the save going 2.1 innings and only giving up 1 hit and 6 strikeouts with no walks and 1 hit by pitch. The Vols offense was led by the top of the order, Garrett Wright led the offense by going 4 for 5 with a HR, 3 RBIs, and 2 runs scored. Henry Ford went 3 for 4 with a HR, 2 RBIs and 3 runs scored. Finally, Blake Grimmer went 2 for 5 and scored 2 runs. I expect the Vols to start Nic Abraham vs the Arkansas Razorbacks at 5:30pm ET in Hoover.

Random Observations in Hoover:
It was a smart move by Elander to insert smooth fielding Jay Abernathy at 2B especially after the trouble Grimmer’s experienced at 2B on the natural surface in OKC. Abernathy made a nice 4-3 DP in the 2nd inning by quickly tagging the runner and firing to 1B

Nathan Eisfelder is no normal true freshman. He’s 20 yo and a top 100 HS recruit who looks ready to play in the SEC. He crushed a 2B to the wall in Right CF.

Vols 6 run 3rd inning was filled with sweet looking backside swings and solid approaches.

Speed kills: Abernathy hit a ground ball in the hole at SS who would have likely never made the play but was ruled an error when he hurriedly bobbled the ball.

SC is comically bad on defense. Vols were smart to keep the pressure on and force the atrocious Gamecock defense to make plays.

Go Vols! Beat Arkansas!

Taylor

 

[VolFan_stuck_in_the_901]

This Week in BaseVols (TWIB)

5/19/26

BaseVols Take OK Series
The #23 BaseVols won the Series by taking 2 out of 3 from the Oklahoma Sooners in OKC in front of a sparse crowd at the AAA ballpark (Chickasaw Bricktown) of the LA Dodgers. The Vols were lead by super Senior Reese Chapman (.462 at 6 for 15 with 2 doubles, 5 runs scored, and 4 RBIs), Manny Marin (.500 at 3 for 6 with a double, a triple, and 4 RBIs all in the first 2 games as he was held out for a minor injury for game 3), and Henry Ford (.364 at 4 for 11 with a double, 2 HRs, 4 runs scored, and 3 RBIs). Unfortunately, the hot hitting senior leader, Reese Chapman, was struck by a line drive in the jaw during practice activities in Hoover and will likely be out of action for the foreseeable future. Let’s hope Chapman is alright for the long term and recovers quickly as this is a huge loss for the Vols and has to be hugely disappointing for Chapman and his family. Starting Pitcher Landon Mack is traveling to Hoover for the SEC tournament but likely doubtful to pitch. Personally, I’d be surprised if we Mack on the mound for the remainder of the season. Ironically, the Vols have been healthy for the majority of the season, but are now experiencing injuries at the worst possible time. If Mack and Chapman aren’t back for the Regionals, it will put the Vols at a huge disadvantage.

On the downside, Garrett Wright (.154 with a .250 OBP), Trent Grindlinger (.143 with a .200 OBP), and Stone Lawless (.000 with a 0-6 in only 2 games) really struggled at the plate in OKC. If the Vols have any hopes for success in the postseason (especially without Reese Chapman and Landon Mack) these 3 need to heat back up quickly. With Chapman out, the Vols inserted freshman Nathan Eisfelder at RF, moved Blake Grimmer to 1B, inserted Jay Abernathy at 2B, and moved Levi Clark to C.

Despite leading the nation in fielding percentage, the Vols struggled defensively on the natural grass and dirt surface at Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark in OKC fielding a paltry .947 with 6 errors for the Series. Make no mistake, the true hops on the artificial surface in Knoxville is much easier on infielders than the natural playing surfaces in OKC, Hoover, and Omaha. Blake Grimmer was officially charged with 2 errors but easily could have had one more, but the college official scoring system seemingly grades on a generous defensive curve turning “would be” errors into hits. The bottom fielding percentages for the Series belonged to 2B Grimmer at .846, SS Ariel Antigua at .875, and 3B Henry Ford at .889. Hopefully, the series in OKC was an outlier and not indicative of how the Vols will play defensively on natural playing surfaces in Hoover or potentially in the Regionals or Supers.



The ABS (Automated Ball-Strike) umpire challenge system is being used for the first time in Hoover for the SEC Tournament. I can’t wait to see how this plays out as each team will obtain 3 challenges per game obtained by a quick tap of the headgear within 2-3 seconds of the pitch. Only the pitcher, batter, or catcher can initiate a challenge. Here’s hoping that ABS becomes standard in the SEC (and the rest of college baseball) next season for the teams that have the Hawk-Eye technology. For the ones that don’t, perhaps that will serve as motivation to obtain it.

I have found it interesting how Tennessee coaches currently receive feedback from the catcher on a questionable ball or strike call. From what I have noticed, they simply ask the catcher “where was it” and the catcher will simply motion with his hand up, down, outside, or inside or he will touch his chest to indicate that it was a strike. In the past, some UT catchers had a method to provide this feedback covertly with the manner in which they would throw the ball back to the pitcher. Personally, I liked this method much better because it didn’t alienate the catcher from the home plate umpire and gave the coaches the feedback they requested in a much more covert way. Perhaps ABS will improve calling balls and strikes moving forward and it will likely reduce dugout chirping.

Status of Tennessee Pitching Staff
As of now, I think the Vols currently have 5 or 6 reliable pitchers including Tegan Kuhns, Evan Blanco, Brandon Arvidson, Bo Rhudy, Nic Abraham, and Cam Appenzeller. After last night’s performance against SC, I think you can add freshman Will Haas to that list. Unfortunately, despite a 97 mph heater and a frisbee slider and elite talent, Brayden Krenzel looks like he could use a few months off. His ceiling is first round talent, but his floor is ending his baseball career at Ohio State. If Landon Mack is healthy OR if his adviisors allow him to pitch, I’d certainly include him on this list. Without Mack, UT looks like a short stay in the postseason unless they find some bullpen magic. On the positive side, there are several talented freshmen who have gained some valuable experience and will look much better on the mound next season.

Grading the Regular Season
When the season started, I proclaimed this team wasn’t a postseason contender due to their youth and inexperience (167th in the country and 13th in the SEC In returning production as measured by D1 Baseball). Considering this and the coaching attrition (Head Coach, Pitching Coach, Strength/Conditioning Coach, and Scouting Director), I would grade UT’s regular season as a solid B. Coach Elander calmed the storm, proved adaptable, and led with a steady hand and an “even keel” demeanor. He made adjustments to the lineup and pitching rotation when necessary but stayed loyal to high ceiling players like Levi Clark and Tegan Kuhns which paid off in spades. UT’s hitting has come on strong, the defense has the best fielding percentage in the nation, but the bullpen has been dreadful. Although dealing with the press isn’t on his list of favorite activities, Coach Elander was refreshingly more candid and direct than I expected. He’s much more of a straight shooter than I expected, but he needs to increase his fan and media exposure next season.

Hoover Heroics:
The Vols beat down the SC Gamecocks 11-6 on a warm Tuesday evening in Hoover, Alabama. Freshman Cam Appenzeller earned the win by going 5 innings and giving up 6 hits, 3 runs, 5 strikeouts, and 3 walks. Fellow freshman Will Haas got the save going 2.1 innings and only giving up 1 hit and 6 strikeouts with no walks and 1 hit by pitch. The Vols offense was led by the top of the order, Garrett Wright led the offense by going 4 for 5 with a HR, 3 RBIs, and 2 runs scored. Henry Ford went 3 for 4 with a HR, 2 RBIs and 3 runs scored. Finally, Blake Grimmer went 2 for 5 and scored 2 runs. I expect the Vols to start Nic Abraham vs the Arkansas Razorbacks at 5:30pm ET in Hoover.

Random Observations in Hoover:
It was a smart move by Elander to insert smooth fielding Jay Abernathy at 2B especially after the trouble Grimmer’s experienced at 2B on the natural surface in OKC. Abernathy made a nice 4-3 DP in the 2nd inning by quickly tagging the runner and firing to 1B

Nathan Eisfelder is no normal true freshman. He’s 20 yo and a top 100 HS recruit who looks ready to play in the SEC. He crushed a 2B to the wall in Right CF.

Vols 6 run 3rd inning was filled with sweet looking backside swings and solid approaches.

Speed kills: Abernathy hit a ground ball in the hole at SS who would have likely never made the play but was ruled an error when he hurriedly bobbled the ball.

SC is comically bad on defense. Vols were smart to keep the pressure on and force the atrocious Gamecock defense to make plays.

Go Vols! Beat Arkansas!

Taylor

Please tell me we will be free of Reynolds soon