Vols Baseball's most impressive feat isn't getting enough attention
New logos. Bat checks. The Whistler. None of them. Nothing was stopping the Tennessee Vols from sweeping the Vanderbilt Commodores in Nashville to remain the top-ranked team in college baseball. It was their first sweep against Vandy in Nashville since 2009. Coming off of a sweep of Ole Miss last weekend, Tennessee looked to continue […]
New logos. Bat checks. The Whistler. None of them. Nothing was stopping the Tennessee Vols from sweeping the Vanderbilt Commodores in Nashville to remain the top-ranked team in college baseball. It was their first sweep against Vandy in Nashville since 2009.
Coming off of a sweep of Ole Miss last weekend, Tennessee looked to continue their winning streak that began on the fifth of March. They did exactly that in convincing fashion against the Commodores. On Friday night, they got yet another strong start from Chase Burns on the mound. On Saturday and Sunday, Chase Dollander and Drew Beam got the job done, respectively, as well. That seems to be a recurring theme this season. Pitching wins for starters isn't a very useful stat in most cases, but when your weekend starters are 17-0, you are doing a lot right on the baseball field.
The Arms
Their pitching situation seems to be the most important part of this baseball team right now. They've been without their "ace" in Blade Tidwell all season. You would have no idea that is the case when you look at how they have performed throughout the year. The young guys in Burns, Dollander, and Beam have been nothing less than dominant.
Accordingly, what happens when Tidwell returns to full strength? It sounds like that could happen in the coming weeks. Could one of the current weekend starters get bumped to the bullpen or the midweek starting role? That's hard to see occurring right now with how they are all pitching against some of the top offenses in the SEC. Ether way, adding a talent like Tidwell back into the fold just makes the Vols even more terrifying.
That aspect for the Vols has to be the most impressive and intriguing piece to their success so far this year. Other teams in the SEC like Mississippi State, Alabama, and LSU lost their aces due to injury, too. Their pitching staffs have not shown nearly the depth or consistency that Tennessee has this season without Tidwell.
Not to mention, the bullpen has been very consistent. Most of the SEC cannot say the same for their relief pitching. Redmond Walsh, Will Mabrey, Ben Joyce, among others have barely been touched in their appearances.
The staff leads the SEC in ERA and BAA. They're second in strikeouts, and they have the least amount of walks. The Vols have walked 61 batters, while the next closest is Vandy and Alabama at 87.
The Bats
I haven't even mentioned the bats for the Vols yet, either. Yes, the legal ones. Those seemed to be working fine for the Volunteers this weekend as well as all season. Another strong weekend from Drew Gilbert saw his average rise to .452 (!!!) on the season, and he has the second-most RBIs on the team with 30. Jordan Beck and Luc Lipcius both had solid weekends as well. There certainly wasn't a lack of fireworks regarding them two, either.
Tennessee leads the SEC in many batting categories as well. Shocker, right? They're hitting .325 as a team with 293 runs scored and 69 homers. Nice stats all around. The production comes throughout the lineup, too. Cortland Lawson has the lowest batting average of any of the everyday starters. Even then, the Vols infielder is hitting .253 with six dingers.
Looking Ahead
This Vols baseball team has all the momentum in the world. Head Coach Tony Vitello is one of the faces of college baseball right now. It could be easy for the Vols to get caught up in the hype, but that hasn't occurred yet. It may not. Other teams certainly shouldn't rely on it.
They undoubtedly are in the driver's seat for championship aspirations with their balance on offense and defense. Regardless, college baseball is a crazy, fickle sport. Just go take a peek at Arkansas or Vanderbilt last season.
There's a long way to go, but the Volunteers have been ridiculously impressive.
Featured Image via USA TODAY-Sports
