An elite hire gives Josh Elander and Tennessee baseball a major staff upgrade

Tennessee baseball has always made a living with great pitching and opportunistic offense, but this season just didn’t have that. The Vols had one of the most lackluster pitching staffs we’ve seen in years. The bullpen was unreliable for much of the year, and while Tennessee did have some ace-caliber starters, it felt like they were always leaving something on the table.

Tracking every player Tennessee baseball loses and gains from the Transfer Portal

In a shakeup that many didn’t see coming, Josh Elander fired pitching coach Josh Reynolds this year. It was a move that honestly needed to be made. It wasn’t that Reynolds was bad, but the bullpen never improved, and it felt like Tennessee could get more from its pitching staff.

In a major win for the Vols and Elander, Tennessee has hired away East Carolina’s pitching coach Austin Knight, whose staff ironically dominated Tennessee in Game 1 of the NCAA Regionals this year.

Elander seemingly is pumped about the hire, and so should Vols fans.

"We are excited to welcome Austin Knight, his wife Taylor, and his two sons Deacon and Clayton to Tennessee," Elander said. "Austin has a proven track record of developing pitchers and leading successful staffs that compete at the highest level. He is an exceptional coach and recruiter whose values align with our culture, and we look forward to the impact he will have on our student-athletes and program."

Tenensse basbeall hires ECU's Austin Knight as pitching coach

Could this be the move that puts Tennessee over the top? Knight has had a lot of success as a pitching coach, and while East Carolina is always a mid-major powerhouse, they still have to compete with the SEC and ACC for recruits. This season, ECU had the 17th-ranked pitching staff in the country with a 4.18 ERA. They also led the American in strikeouts, which is a huge deal.

Even more importantly, Elander making a move like this shows he wants more than just to win. He could have kept the status quo with Reynolds, but he knew he needed more from his staff if he wanted to get back to Omaha. If you’re a Vols fan, you have to like the courage Elander showed here, because I’m sure it wasn’t easy to fire someone he has worked with for a few years now.

Here’s where it gets interesting too. Knight has already developed five All-American selections and nine MLB Draft picks, including Blue Jays star Trey Yesavage, who has become one of the best pitchers in the major leagues. Give him a recruiting budget like Tennessee has, and with his player development track record, the Vols staff could go nuclear. With Cam Appenzeller and Landon Mack back Knight, already has a strong core to work with next spring.

Now you can see why Tennessee fans should be excited about the future of the program. The next step is adding some big-time portal players, and suddenly getting back to Omaha doesn’t feel that far off.

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