Tennessee baseball delivered a reminder against Vanderbilt: This Vols team is dangerous
Vanderbilt pitcher Bryce Cunningham got a standing ovation Saturday.
The Lindsey Nelson Stadium crowd rose to cheer the dejected, departing pitcher. So was the Tennessee baseball dugout, the dominance back and a new version of the trademark Tennessee attitude back with it.
The Vols had walked-off Vanderbilt the previous day. They led 8-0 in the first inning and were far from done.
"In my own head, I thought we had the game won just based, looking at our dugout compared to theirs, they were kind of just down," Vols designated hitter Kavares Tears said Saturday.
No. 20 Tennessee (26-14, 8-10 SEC) delivered a noisy reminder of how dangerous it can be by destroying No. 4 Vanderbilt (29-11, 13-5) in a statement sweep. The Vols came back to beat the Commodores on Friday 4-3 in 12 innings, then took a 17-1 run-rule victory Saturday, and complete the sweep Sunday with a 10-5 win.
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"They’ve kind of made a decision," Vols coach Tony Vitello said. "Let’s come together as a team and be what we are and call it let it all hang out if you want, but again come together as a team and see what we can do.”
Tennessee baseball got what it needed for now and what's next
Vols starting pitcher Andrew Lindsey aptly described Tennessee's comeback win Friday night as a "firestarter." His teammates made good on his words with the offensive production Saturday and Sunday. Tennessee delivered early blows and kept smashing, pitching and winning.
It made for a reminder of Tennessee's potential and why the Vols were ranked No. 2 entering the season. UT got dominant starting pitching. It got clutch hitting, scoring 12 two-out runs Saturday and five more in the second inning Sunday. Transfers Maui Ahuna, Zane Denton, Griffin Merritt, and Lindsey made major contributions.
Tennessee, which made its postseason picture murky by being swept a week ago at Arkansas, left no question it is an NCAA Tournament-caliber group by getting three notable and much-needed wins. The Vols host Mississippi State and play at Georgia the following weekend with a chance to cement their status in the postseason.
"We need to understand the goal is to win series and find a way to execute it, but in all sincerity — I don’t know how to say it without trying to sell you on something — it was way more important for our guys to find who they are," Vitello said Sunday.
That's the pitching expected from Tennessee
Lindsey set the tone with "courage" on the mound in the eyes of Vols pitching coach Frank Anderson. He struck out a career-high 10 in 6⅔ innings. Chase Dollander carried on with a seven-inning complete game Saturday. He struck out nine and allowed on run in his best outing in SEC play. Chase Burns might have been the best pitcher on the weekend, striking out seven in three innings of relief.
Drew Beam continued to dominate Vanderbilt, spinning 6⅔ innings and allowing one earned run after throwing a complete-game shutout in Nashville last season.
Tony Vitello has dominated Vanderbilt
The Vols have won seven straight against Vanderbilt with the sweep. UT swept Vanderbilt in Nashville last season before beating the Commodores again in the SEC Tournament. The seven-game winning streak is the longest Tennessee has had against Vanderbilt since it won eight straight from 1993-94.
Vitello improved to 10-6 against Vanderbilt in his tenure, the latest three the sweetest yet for Tennessee.
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 delivered a reminder against Vanderbilt in sweep
