Tennessee baseball is less than three weeks away from opening up its 2024 season. With the season’s first pitch getting closer-and-closer, college baseball publications are releasing its preseason rankings.
Baseball America released its preseason top 25 on Monday with Tennessee baseball coming in at No. 8 nationally.
“Tennessee again has one of the sport’s most exciting rosters,” Teddy Cahill wrote. “Righthander Drew Beam is among the most accomplished starters in college baseball and the Volunteers’ lineup, anchored by second baseman Christian Moore, is one of the most powerful. Tennessee must integrate some key newcomers, but it has proven adept at doing so in recent years.”
The Vols are the fifth highest ranked SEC team in the preseason ranking, coming in behind No. 2 LSU, No. 3 Arkansas, No. 4 Florida and No. 7 Vanderbilt and ahead of No. 11 Texas A&M, No. 12 South Carolina and No. 23 Auburn.
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Tennessee baseball travels to Florida, Vanderbilt and Auburn in conference play while hosting South Carolina and LSU in Knoxville. The Vols don’t face Arkansas or Texas A&M in the regular season.
The Vols are coming off a strong 2023 season that saw them advance to the College World Series for the second time in three seasons and earn its first College World Series victory since 2001. Tony Vitello’s sixth Tennessee team struggled the first half of the season before turning it around and making an adversity filled run to Omaha.
Tennessee returns a number of key players from last seasons team including position starters Blake Burke, Christian Moore and Hunter Ensley and high-level starting pitcher Drew Beam. But the Vols brought in an impressive transfer portal haul including Clemson’s Billy Amick, North Carolina State’s Cannon Peebles and Wichita State’s Nate Snead.
