Tennessee baseball is coming off a disappointing weekend, dropping two of three games to Kent State at Lindsey Nelson Stadium. The Golden Flashes are a good MAC team who could make the NCAA Tournament. If the Vols dropped one game, it would be understandable, but dropping the weekend series is a bad development.
The series loss was Tennessee’s first in non conference play since they dropped two out of three against Wright State during the 2020 season.
What should we make of the bad weekend? Where does Tennessee go from here? Taking a look at takeaways from the weekend.
More From RTI: Everything Tennessee Baseball HC Josh Elander Said After Series Loss to Kent State
This Wasn’t A Fluke
Let’s start here, this was not a fluke. Tennessee did not just have a bunch of bad breaks. Even after the Vols lone win of the series, head coach Josh Elander said that Tennessee “stole one.” Kent State outplayed Tennessee and that is a worrisome sign.
Does that mean the season is over? Absolutely not. Does that mean it’s time to hit the panic button? I don’t think just yet. The season is long and Tennessee has talent, but there are still some real concerns with this team. Let’s dive into some of them here.
Tennessee Needs More From Levi Clark
Levi Clark parlayed a strong close to his freshman season with a great offseason and was a top breakout candidate in Tennessee’s lineup this season. But after a one-for-10 weekend at the plate against Kent State, Clark is now hitting .160 with one home run, three RBIs, three walks and seven strikeouts in the first seven games of the season.
Last week, we discussed the concerns about the middle portion of Tennessee’s lineup. Those concerns persist after the Kent State series. That puts more pressure on the top hitters on the Vols’ roster.
Clark is one of those players. Tennessee needs more from him. I’d wager that he gets it going before too long.
Poor Situational Hitting Gives Reason For Hope
If there was any element of flukiness from the weekend, it was how horrific Tennessee’s offense was with situational hitting. The Vols hit four-for-42 (.095) with runners on base and three-for-22 (.136) with runners in scoring position.
Now, that is not just being unlucky. Tennessee did not get the job done in those opportunities. But in a one weekend sample size, it’s not fair to think that that is who Tennessee is. Moving forward, the Vols will hit better than they did with runners on base last weekend.
That will naturally lead to some better offensive results, but that also isn’t a fix all for Tennessee’s current offensive woes.
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Tennessee Has To Be Better Defensively
This is something we hit on last season when Tennessee’s offense and pitching was not at the same level it had been in recent seasons. That’s all the more the case this season. The Vols do not have the offensive talent to simply outgun people and win high scoring games when they make defensive mistakes.
And this weekend, there were a lot of defensive mistakes. Tennessee committed five errors over the course of the weekend, was lethargic trying to turn a double play and allowed eight stolen bases while catching just two runners stealing.
Defense was a major emphasis for Tennessee during the preseason, making the issues more frustrating. Josh Elander was not going to blame those miscues on the weather either, nor should he have. But he did express confidence that this issue would not persist for the Vols.
Bullpen Shows Some Cracks
This was perhaps the most surprising part of the weekend to me. I was high on Tennessee’s bullpen entering the season. The Vols’ starting pitching was still mostly solid against Kent State, but the bullpen had some breakdowns.
Kennesaw State transfer Bo Rhudy blew a save on Friday night. Sophomore RHP Brayden Krenzel was good on Friday before struggling on game three. Freshman Ethan Baiotto also had a poor outing.
Now, Brandon Arvidson returned to the mound and looked great. Talented freshman Cameron Appenzeller didn’t pitch, though he was available. It’s not all doom-and-gloom with the bullpen, but it did show some cracks.
