Tennessee infielder Christian Moore leaves a historic and memorable legacy as he departs Rocky Top to continue his journey to professional baseball.
Topping things off by leading Tennessee to their first National Championship, Moore ended his final season at Tennessee as a two-time First Team All-American, a two-time Second Team All-American, and a First Team All-SEC selection. Moore’s dominance at the plate and invaluable leadership qualities in the clubhouse helped propel him to a dominant season and a championship parade through the streets of Knoxville.
On Friday morning, Moore penned a farewell message to Tennessee on social media as he addressed his teammates, the program, and the fans.
Here was Moore’s message:
“I don’t really know where to begin. These last 3 years have changed my life. Thank you to this amazing coaching staff for believing in me, taking a chance on a kid that should have never been in this situation. Trusting me to lead a team and allowing me to be me. I will forever be grateful for all the long talks, countless hours of work and most important the memories shared!
To my teammates… y’all have seen me grow up a lot these last few years. Thank you all for taking me under your wing, allowing me to grow up and mature. Without you all I am not the player I am today. Always remember Chuck T “Hang out type”. Love y’all boys, thank you for all the memories and moments it will heavily be missed ❤️
Vol nation, you guys are unbelievable. Talking for the rest of the team, you guys were the heartbeat of this thing. Thank you for always being there for us, cheering us on through the good and bad. We are forever thankful for you all and I will miss you guys! GB🍊 Forever!”
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Christian Moore takes with him several individual records during his final season, which also helped the Vols achieve new team program records as well.
Moore broke Tennessee’s single-season individual home run record with 34 longballs, crushing the previous record set by Sonny Cortez with 24 in 1998. Moore also set all-time Tennessee records in at-bats (296), extra-base hits (55), total bases (236), and games played (tied with Blake Burke, 72). The Brooklyn native also set Tennessee’s career home run record at 61, 21 more than Luc Lipcius.
Moore’s prowess at the plate as Tennessee’s leadoff man also contributed to program single-single team records in wins (60), games (73), home runs (184), doubles (160), RBIs (609), grand slams (12), slugging percentage (.607), extra-base hits (353), runs scored (657), and total bases (1,494).
The 6-foot-1 infielder began his career at Tennessee during the 2022 season after seeing head coach Tony Vitello’s vision for the program, believing that he could take part in achieving success. Moore appeared in 51 games with 29 starts as a freshman that season and hit an impressive .305 with 36 home runs, hinting at a bright future ahead.
Moore saw much more playing time as a starter for Tennessee in 2023, remaining consistent with a .304 batting average despite seeing nearly 100 more at-bats on the season. With Tennessee looking to take a big leap forward in 2024, though, they would need Moore’s game to elevate rather than stay consistent.
Which is exactly what happened.
With 296 at-bats on the year as Tennessee’s leadoff hitter, Moore tallied a .375 batting average with a program-record 34 home runs. Moore was a menace for opposing pitchers and kept his foot on the gas during the postseason, even recording the sixth cycle in Men’s College World Series history.
Moore now turns his attention to the MLB Draft in June. Jonathan Mayo’s latest mock draft for MLB Pipeline has Moore as the 13th-best player and the No. 12 selection by the Boston Red Sox. Mayo also notes that the Pirates could be interested in Moore’s services with the No. 9 pick as well.
Christian Moore is one of the most decorated Tennessee athletes of all time and will be remembered as a legend on Rocky Top.
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