Former Tennessee baseball player pays Vols LHP Liam Doyle the ultimate compliment after gutsy performance against Wake Forest
One of the big heroes of the Tennessee Vols' 11-5 win against the Wake Forest Demon Deacons in the Knoxville Regional final on Monday night was Volunteers LHP Liam Doyle. Doyle basically begged to pitch against Wake Forest on Monday night despite throwing 104 pitches on Friday night in the Vols' win against Miami (OH). […]
One of the big heroes of the Tennessee Vols' 11-5 win against the Wake Forest Demon Deacons in the Knoxville Regional final on Monday night was Volunteers LHP Liam Doyle.
Doyle basically begged to pitch against Wake Forest on Monday night despite throwing 104 pitches on Friday night in the Vols' win against Miami (OH).
And the New Hampshire native was terrific, pitching 2.1 shutout innings to preserve the win for Tennessee.
Doyle threw 31 pitches on Monday night on just two days of rest.
It was a gutsy performance from a player that will likely be a top five selection in the 2025 MLB Draft later this summer.
"[I] wanted the ball," said Doyle after the game. "I knew I could win for my team and put it all on the line out there.”
Doyle had nothing to gain on a personal level by pitching on Monday night. But he was willing to take the risk of throwing on just two days of rest because he wanted to come through for his teammates in Tennessee's biggest game of the season.
That's something that wasn't lost on former Vols outfielder/DH Griffin Merritt.
"In an era of selfishness in college sports, how about this guy Liam Doyle," tweeted Merritt. "Automatic first round drat pick who has nothing to gain throwing tonight except throwing for his brothers and his school. Thank you Liam for making a Volunteer baseball alum proud tonight."
Merritt couldn't have said it any better.
I'm not faulting anyone for protecting their future career — every situation is different. And I don't necessarily think there's a wrong answer on how to handle those kinds of situations. But what Doyle did on Monday night is really what sports are all about. Doyle was competing for his teammates on Monday night, not for himself or his future pro career.
Quite simply, what Doyle did against Wake Forest was college sports at its best.
