Tony Vitello's pitch to make Tennessee baseball's roster even better in transfer portal

Tony Vitello doesn’t think of himself as much of a sales pitch person.

The Tennessee baseball coach doesn’t have to think hard to figure out how to sell transfers on coming to Knoxville, though. There’s the winning, the competitive environment, getting players to the MLB Draft and more.

“We are incredibly black and white,” Vitello said. “We get our recruits and people we are courting around our players so they can hear it from them. One thing they will hear from our players is they enjoy — kind of like the coaches — working around each other. It is an environment where everyone enjoys being.”

Tennessee likely will be active in the transfer portal to add to its roster after this season.

Kansas shortstop Maui Ahuna, Air Force pitcher Paul Skenes, Vanderbilt pitcher Christian Little, North Carolina State first baseman Tommy White and UCLA pitcher Thatcher Hurd are some of the top names currently in the portal.

“Our guys want to win,” Vitello said. “There isn’t anyone that is disgruntled in that or has other thoughts or feelings. They like competition. They know competition will make them better as an individual and if they want to win, they know anyone that can help us win does just that.”

Ahuna, a 6-foot-1, 165-pound infielder, batted .396 with eight homers and 48 RBIs at Kansas last season. He is one of the most coveted transfers in the nation and would be an ideal fit for the Vols, who likely will lose at least one starting middle infielder if not both Cortland Lawson and Jorel Ortega.

Skenes is a two-way player from Air Force. He had a 2.73 ERA in 15 starts as a sophomore along with a .314 average, 13 homers and 38 RBIs. White set the NCAA record for home runs by a freshman with 27 at N.C. State.

Vitello stressed that transfers can benefit from working with pitching coach Frank Anderson and hitting coach Josh Elander to prepare them for the MLB Draft. The Vols are expected to have double-digit draft picks in July.

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“I think guys are assured to improve,” Vitello said. “All these kids want to play pro ball. … We want to get them ready to win for the Vols but we want to get them ready for pro ball.”

Chase Dollander transferred to UT after his freshman season at Georgia Southern. He was named the SEC pitcher of the year. He is 9-0 with a 2.38 ERA and 103 strikeouts with only 13 walks in 72 innings.

He has credited Anderson and the UT coaches for his development.

“The coaching staff, we have guys that just want the best for you and put you in the best situation for you to succeed,” Ortega said. “They put in hours after practice. I think they spend more time with us than their own wives or whatever, honestly.”

Tennessee's efforts in the transfer portal are ongoing while the postseason continues. The No. 1 Vols (56-7) face Notre Dame (38-14) starting Friday (6 p.m. ET, ESPN2) in a best-of-three series in the Knoxville Super Regional.

That, first baseman Luc Lipcius said, creates another selling point for transfers.

“If you bring a recruit to Lindsey Nelson (Stadium) in June, they are going to feel why they need to come here,” Lipcius said. “It is just something else.”

Mike Wilson covers University of Tennessee athletics. Email him at michael.wilson@knoxnews.com and follow him on Twitter @ByMikeWilson. If you enjoy Mike’s coverage, consider a digital subscription that will allow you access to all of it.

This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Tennessee baseball roster: Tony Vitello makes transfer portal pitch