Excitement is building for the 2024 Tennessee baseball season with the season opening weekend five weeks away. The Vols are looking to return to the College World Series for the second straight year and the third time in four years.
Tennessee returns a number of players from last season’s team but a large part of the optimism for the 2024 Vols revolves around their six-player transfer class. D1Baseball ranks Tennessee’s transfer class as the third best nationally and second best in the SEC.
Wake Forest and LSU come in right ahead of Tennessee while Florida and Florida State round out the top five.
The Vols’ transfer portal class includes three position players and three pitchers. Clemson corner infielder Billy Amick and North Carolina State catcher Cannon Peebles headline the class.
As a sophomore last season, Amick hit .413 with 13 home runs and 63 RBIs which earned him All-ACC honors. Peebles started at catcher for the Wolfpack, hitting .352 with 12 home runs and 51 RBIs as a switch hitter.
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Missouri utility transfer Dalton Bargo rounded out the position player portion of the transfer class. Bargo started off-and-one, mostly as a designated hitter for the Tigers as a freshman last season. The utility man hit .279 with five home runs and 23 RBIs.
Wichita State RHP Nate Snead is the headliner of the pitching group. Boasting a high-90s fastball, Snead posted a 1-2 record, 3.16 ERA and 1.27 WHIP in 42.2 innings pitched during his freshman season.
While Snead has multiple years of eligibility remaining, Jacksonville State’s AJ Causey and Cal’s Chris Stamos are each veteran arms. Causey was a starter for the Gamecocks but projects as a bullpen arm. Stamos came out of the bullpen for the Bears.
The Vols also added a handful of junior college transfers including infielders Alex Perry and Bradke Lohry as well as two-way players Marcus Phillips and Robin Villeneuve.
Tennessee is a fringe top 10 team entering the 2024 season in what’s expected to be a loaded SEC per usual. The Vols open their 2024 season at the Shriner’s Children College Baseball Showdown in Dallas.
