Former Tennessee baseball stars were a rarity in Major League Baseball for a long time, but as Tony Vitello’s tenure marches along there are more-and-more talented former Vol baseball players working their way up from Minor League Baseball into the Major Leagues.
While that is often a slow climb, it wasn’t for former Tennessee reliever Ben Joyce who made his MLB debut during just his first full professional season. Joyce quickly making it to the MLB was largely unsurprising because of his 100-plus MLB fastball that earned him the nickname “The Volunteer Fireman.”
But Joyce didn’t spend much time pitching during the 2023 season due to an injury that place him on the 60-day IL. After starting the 2024 season in the Minor Leagues, Joyce made it up to the MLB in June and is having a dominant professional season.
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The right-handed pitcher allowed five earned runs in his first three appearances but found a dominant groove after that. In his next 18 appearances, Joyce didn’t allow a single run while striking out 20 batters in 22.2 innings pitched. Over the course of an impressive 2024 season, Joyce has posted a 2.54 ERA and 1.27 WHIP while striking out 24 batters and recording two saves in 28.1 innings pitched.
He’s also done it while rocking Tennessee cleats in an ode to his alma mater and hometown team.
Ben Joyce’s Volunteer Fireman cleats. pic.twitter.com/FtCepofHsi
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) August 17, 2024
Former Tennessee pitcher Garrett Crochet became the first Vitello era Vol to make the MLB All-Star game this season and Joyce’s dominance while not spending the entire season with the Angels makes it easy to imagine him becoming the second to make the All-Star game.
Joyce spent just one healthy season at Tennessee where he became a household name with his electric fastball that peaked at 105 MPH in a win over Auburn. Over the course of the season, Joyce posted a 2-1 record, 2.23 ERA and 53 strikeouts in 32.1 innings pitched.
