Tennessee Baseball: 2023 preseason polls have Vols ranked too low
By Blake Wyman
Two days ago, the 2023 preseason polls were released for the upcoming baseball season. There are many familiar schools at the top of this year’s poll, like Tennessee baseball, which are expected to carry on their performance from last year. Baseball season is just around the corner, so let’s take a deeper look into the top 10 to find out each team’s strengths, weaknesses, and returning players.
No. 10: Vanderbilt Commodores
The Commodores will have 3 of their top 5 batters returning this year. Calvin Hewett, Enrique Bradfield Jr., and T.J. McKenzie all had a batting average above .300 last year and will be returning for the 2023 season.
However, their 2 best bats have graduated and will not be returning this year. The biggest loss to Vanderbilts’ offense is Dominic Keegan, who had a .371. batting average led the team in slugging last year.
Another positive for the Commodores is Sophomore left-handed pitcher Devin Futrell. Devin led the team with 9 wins last year and will likely be their ace coming into this year’s season.