Tony Vitello makes honest admission after Tennessee's series loss to Kentucky that will serve as a reality check for his players
Tony Vitello hit his team with a bit of a reality check on Sunday after the Tennessee Vols dropped the rubber game of a three-game series against the Kentucky Wildcats. After winning the series-opener on Friday night, the Volunteers dropped back-to-back games against the Wildcats, giving Tennessee its second series loss of the season. Vitello […]
Tony Vitello hit his team with a bit of a reality check on Sunday after the Tennessee Vols dropped the rubber game of a three-game series against the Kentucky Wildcats.
After winning the series-opener on Friday night, the Volunteers dropped back-to-back games against the Wildcats, giving Tennessee its second series loss of the season.
Vitello told reporters on Sunday after the Vols' loss that the vibe in the dugout "wasn't good" while also noting that success won't just be handed to Tennessee.
"The attitude and the vibe wasn’t very good," said Vitello. "It was of frustration. And I think sometimes I think our guys have success and then think it’s going to be handed to them. And they’ve made adjustments in the past and we didn’t necessarily do that today."
"I think early in the game, the tension was there maybe a little too much," added Vitello. "But again, when it kind of goes down the way it does in the second inning and you don’t get immediate results, it’s, I think, nature of the beast. I was the worst at it of you let the results or the scoreboard sway your mood a little bit. So maybe there’s a little bit more of an underlying theme there of guys allowing results or outcomes to kind of shift their mood one way or the other."
I don't think this is any massive red flag for Tennessee's baseball program. The Vols are still a good team despite the series loss to Kentucky. Baseball is a grind unlike any other sport. And Tennessee is currently in the "dog days" of the season. It can be tough to stay hungry on every pitch of every game. And sometimes, teams need a small reminder that you can never put it on cruise control in this sport and win games against tough competition.
Fortunately for Tennessee, the series loss to Kentucky won't have a major impact on the outcome of their season. The important thing is that UT's players use this series loss as motivation to play at a high level for every inning over the final month of the regular season.
