Tennessee baseball transfer commit Eric Rataczak signing professionally with the Miami Marlins and is foregoing his final collegiate season, he told RTI on Sunday.
The Miami Marlins drafted Rataczak in the 17th round of the 2024 MLB Draft on Tuesday just over a week after committing to the Vols over Wake Forest in the transfer portal. As a 23-year old rising redshirt senior, Rataczak had a tough choice to make concerning whether he would take this opportunity and sign professionally or roll the dice and look to improve his stock with a big season in the SEC.
Ultimately, Rataczak decided not to turn down this chance in professional baseball and will not make it to Knoxville.
Last season at Niagara, Rataczak won MAAC Player of the Year honors by hitting .396 with 17 home runs, 32 extra-base hits and 71 RBIs. The left-handed hitting first baseman posted a .396/.485/.696 while posting a 8.7% strikeout rate and 11.7% walk rate.
More From RTI: Zander Sechrist Signs Undrafted Free Agent Deal With Minnesota Twins
Rataczak had one of the more wild college baseball journeys imaginable. He started his college career as a student playing club baseball at the University of San Diego before playing at both Wabash Community College in Illinois and Arizona Western Community. The power hitting first baseman went back to San Diego and played more club baseball before transferring to Niagara before the 2024 season.
With Rataczak off to professional baseball, Tennessee has an interesting dilemma with no true first basemen on its roster. Rising junior utility man Dalton Bargo is capable of playing first base as is rising sophomore Dean Curley who started at shortstop as a freshman but is capable of playing any infield position. Without Rataczak on the 2025 roster, there will be an abundance of competition to see who wins the starting job.
Losing Rataczak is a tough blow but Tennessee still has plenty of talent in its infield after adding Ole Miss third baseman Andrew Fischer and Louisville middle infielder Gavin Kilen to its roster this offseason. The Vols also have rising sophomore Dean Curley and Ariel Antigua back.
Without Rataczak, Tennessee baseball’s transfer portal class currently contains four players— Fischer, Kilen, Ole Miss left-handed pitcher Liam Doyle and Kennesaw State right-handed pitcher Tanner Franklin.
