The Josh Elander era began officially over the weekend for Tennessee baseball, as the Vols completed the three-game sweep of Nicholls State before claiming the midweek victory over UNC Asheville on Tuesday.
Ranked at No. 13 in the most recent D1 Baseball Top 25 poll, the Vols still may have some proving to do if they want to show they are still the same Vols of old.
The Vols' next chance to get better comes in a weekend series at home with Kent State. First pitch is Friday at 4:30 p.m. ET.
The team lost a handful of production on both sides of the ball due to the draft, with guys like Liam Doyle, Gavin Kilen, and Andrew Fischer all being drafted in the first round of the 2025 MLB Draft.
Enter their replacements, Henry Ford, Blaine Brown, and a familiar face, Tegan Kuhns.
Brown, a transfer from Rice, was coined as a two-way player who can swing for the fences, but also post a solid 95 miles per hour on his fastball.
On Tuesday, for the midweek game against UNC Asheville, Brown was sent out as the opener before being replaced by freshman Cameron Appenzeller.
“Special player,” Elander said. "I think he’s just been getting better every day. It’s funny, I was jogging by, off the field, at the end of the game, and the umpire was like, ‘Well, at least he finally got out!’ And he hit one right to the track right there.
"But it's pretty cool to see him having fun and playing loose. He has a slow heart rate, but he's very gifted. We’re expecting special things from Blaine all year long.”
Brown only tossed one inning as the opener, but did strike out the side on 16 pitches.
"I just want to get into where he gets as many touches on the mound where he's able to get his full routine in,” Elander said. “We're kind of balancing.”
Brown, through his first four games offensively and 19 at-bats, holds a .474 batting average, leading the team. He’s also tallied three home runs and an OPS of 1.553.
Joining Brown in this year’s transfer class is Ford, a transfer from Virginia who also impressed in 17 at-bats, slashing .412 with two home runs.
The offense is filled with questions in terms of consistency. Guys like Stone Lawless and Jay Abernathy had great starts, but can that be maintained? Will Levi Clark continue to take the right steps and become the next great first baseman for the Vols?
There remain questions, but the quick success of the new transfers has been an encouraging step.
Pitching-wise, Kuhns is the main returning piece in the rotation. His first start on Friday became possibly the best start of his young career; he went 6.2 innings, allowing no runs and striking out eight.
Along with Kuhns are transfers Landon Mack and Evan Blanco, both of whom made their debut on Saturday for the double-header. Both pitched solid starts, allowing a combined one run over 11 innings.
The team isn’t at full health yet. Manny Marin is nursing a hand injury, while pitcher Brandon Arvidson is also still being worked back.
“So again, just staying hooked up,” Elander said. “I told them it’s not easy to win two games in one day. I don’t care who you’re playing or when or where you’re playing; it’s not easy to do in college baseball. So [I’m] proud of how they handled their business.”