Yankees officially option shortstop Anthony Volpe to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre
Yankees option shortstop Anthony Volpe to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre
Tennessee baseball salvaged a series against Kentucky with a 10-9 win after losing the first two games. The team's pitching struggles were highlighted during the series, prompting coach Josh Elander to address the performances.
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What we learned about Tennessee baseball pitching in series loss vs Kentucky
It took everything Tennessee baseball had to salvage something from its series against Kentucky.
Kentucky had dominated the first two games at Kentucky Proud Park in Lexington, winning the first, 9-2, and the second by run rule, 12-2. Vols coach Josh Elander was honest with his team: those two performances werenât up to the programâs standard.
Tennessee (31-17, 11-13 SEC) responded by squeezing out a 10-9 win against the Wildcats (29-16, 11-13) on May 3 that avoided a sweep. It was a game of ups and downs, in many ways a microcosm of the Volsâ season as their lead buoyed from as many as six to as few as one in a rollercoaster final three innings.
âYou don't really draw it up where you give up eight runs in the last three innings and still find a way to get out, but again, a Sunday win â we'll take it any way we can get it,â Elander said.
Here are three takeaways from the three-game series for the Vols:
Despite some difficulties against Kentucky, Tegan Kuhns and Evan Blanco have been reliable starters for the Vols, and an effective Landon Mack rounding out the rotation could make Tennessee a scary matchup in a regional. But questions surrounding its bullpen remain unanswered.
In the series finale, Tennesseeâs bullpen gave up eight runs, beginning with lefthander Cam Appenzeller allowing four in just 0.2 innings. It was a continuation of a concerning trend for Appenzeller, who for most of the season looked like one of the best freshman pitchers in the country but has turned in some less-than-encouraging performances of late. He has allowed 14 runs in his last 6.1 innings pitched against SEC competition.
Tennessee lost the first two games 9-2 and 12-2 but won the final game 10-9.
Josh Elander is the head coach of the Tennessee baseball team.
The win allowed Tennessee to avoid a series sweep and highlighted their resilience amid pitching struggles.
Tennessee's pitching was inconsistent, leading to significant losses in the first two games before a better performance in the final game.
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It was also a carryover for the team the day before when four Tennessee relievers allowed six runs in two-plus innings, allowing Kentucky to run-rule the Vols in eight innings.
âThe âpen was not good, period,â Elander said on May 2. âWe didn't throw strikes, hit batters, walks, and then barrels over the plate.â
Although the bullpen struggled, Mack provided a major boost on May 3. He shut down the Kentucky lineup, giving up one run and six hits in six innings.
âHe was phenomenal,â Elander said. âHe did everything we asked him to. Made a few adjustments to make sure that his glove was covered up and attacking the strike zone. Worked around some traffic in the first, but just throwing strikes and had all the pitches going today.â
Mackâs strong start wasnât only promising because of the team stakes, but also for him personally. After consecutive shaky outings, most recently giving up five runs in less than three innings against Alabama on April 23, Mack was bumped from the Friday starter role he held for four weeks. He responded with his best showing in a month, which could be a building block for a strong finish for the Rutgers transfer.
âI mean, he's a difference-maker when he's locked in, and he needs to take a lot of confidence from that coming down the stretch because we're going to need him,â added Elander.
The Vols remain a likely NCAA Tournament team, but losing the series wonât help their case as they position for the SEC Tournament. The top eight seeds earn byes, and if the regular season ended today, Tennessee would be on the outside by multiple games.
The Vols will need to win both of their final two SEC series against No. 4 Texas and No. 15 Oklahoma to avoid playing on the first day of the tournament, likely needing at least one sweep against two of the six highest-ranked teams in the conference if the teams ahead perform. Itâs a tall task for Tennessee, which hasnât won consecutive SEC series this season.
Emmett Siegel covers Tennessee baseball for Knox News. Email: emmett.siegel@knoxnews.com; X: @EmmettSiegel_
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Tennessee baseball has tough path to SEC bye after series vs Kentucky