Tennessee transfer left-handed pitcher Luke Payne committed to East Carolina baseball Friday morning, he announced on Instagram a week and a half after entering the portal.
Payne spent two seasons at Tennessee, posting a 2.45 ERA in 7.1 total innings pitched. He pitched 3.2 innings in both his freshman and sophomore seasons, allowing no runs in 2024 and two runs during his sophomore season.
The Gallatin, Tennessee native struck out 14 batters during his two seasons while opponents hit just .120. Payne’s biggest shortcoming in Knoxville was his inconsistency finding the strike zone, walking seven batters at a 21.2% clip in his college career. He didn’t make any appearances in SEC play in his two seasons in Knoxville.
Payne showed flashes during last fall and in the preseason but never put it together enough to be a key bullpen arm for the Vols during his sophomore season.
The 6-foot-4 left hander finds a strong landing spot in Greenville. East Carolina is perhaps the nation’s top mid major program in recent years, making seven straight and nine of the last 10 NCAA Tournaments. East Carolina has won seven regionals in program history but is still searching for its first ever College World Series birth.
More From RTI: Tennessee Transfer Pitcher Dylan Loy Commits To Strong ACC Program
East Carolina has played a part in Tennessee baseball’s history. The Vols beat the Pirates in 2001 to advance to the third College World Series appearance in program history.
Tennessee baseball lost 20 pitchers to the transfer portal this offseason with Dylan Loy being the most notable. A handful have announced commitments including Loy (Georgia Tech) Ryler Smart (LSU), Andrew Behnke (Georgia), Michael Sharman (Clemson), Bryson Thacker (West Virginia) and JJ Garcia (Appalachian State).
The Vols have landed seven pitchers in the transfer portal to date including Virginia LHP Evan Blanco, Bowling Green two-way DJ Newman, Rice two-way Blaine Brown, ESTU RHP Brady Frederick, UNC Asheville RHP Clay Edmondson, Kennesaw State RHP Bo Rhudy and MIT RHP Mason Estrada.
Tennessee also hosted Southern Cal RHP Brodie Purcell on a visit earlier this week after he earned Second Team All-Big 10 honors during his sophomore season.
