Tennessee baseball head coach Josh Elander met with the media following the Vols’ 7-1 series-clinching victory over Missouri Sunday in Knoxville.
Elander discussed Evan Blanco’s tremendous 7.2-inning start and what led to more success for the Virginia transfer. Elander also touched on Stone Lawless’ big weekend at the plate and how important it was to finally win a series rubber match.
RECAP: Evan Blanco Shines as Tennessee Baseball Wins Series Against Missouri
See everything Elander said after the win below.
On if this is what they envisioned when they got Evan Blanco out of the portal:
“He was so good today. It was just good to see him really settle in, and they were hacking from first pitch, trying to get after him, but he just did a good job of mixing speeds and really filling it up. And really, the only blemish was (Pierre) Seals landed on one, but we can live with that. If he’s not going to walk guys and not give up free 90 feets, he’s pretty good.
“He was up to 92 (mph), and velo was holding a little bit better. Change(up) was dynamic at times and had both breaking balls going. But just attack, attack, attack, and he put us in a really good position to win the game. It was good to see how he handled everything.”
On Evan Blanco’s efficiency:
“It’s amazing, and it’s exciting on Sunday because Sundays in this league… you never know. It can be 12-14 or a one-run game, but you kind of brace for anything that could be possible, and a lot of times it’s higher-scoring games on Sunday.
“When he gives you some length right there, it gives you a chance to get to the bullpen, maybe do some different things. And being a little greedy, there’s some guys I’d like to be able to get in there. I know (Mark) Hindy we need to get in there and (Bo) Rhudy some more. But, it was good to see (Brayden) Krenzel get back in there and finish it out. But, the story of the day was Blanco filling it up.”
On Brayden Krenzel bouncing back after rocky start:
“I think Reyn (Josh Reynolds) did a great job there just slowing him down. The fastball was really good. It’s always going to tick off a little bit. He hits the guy with the breaking ball, so just needs to have conviction with his pitches.
“His stuff is as good as anybody in the conference. And it was nice to see instead of letting that thing snowball and get out of control there real quick – because they’re still one swing away from tying the game at that point – but we have trust in Krenz (Brayden Krenzel). He’s got good stuff. He’s our guy. And it was good to see him take the ball and make the adjustments and get it done. He’s going to do that more for us.”
On how good it was to see Levi Clark hit a home run:
“Amazing. I’m glad it got over because I thought he (Pierre Seals) caught it at one point. We won’t talk about that anymore. But just staying to the baseball. Not trying to do too much. He’s just competing, and he’s on his way. We’ve been talking about it in the building. Everybody’s rooting for him, and everybody believes in him.
“He’s a great teammate, and you want those guys to have success, and sometimes they just have to play ball. That’s it. When he started to do that – he’s doing a good job behind the dish, too – going from a one-run lead to a three-run lead right there by just staying to the ball, I think it really changed the course of really letting (Evan) Blanco settle in and our guys just playing ball.”
On what makes Tyler Myatt so effective in pinch-hit situations:
“That’s a great question. I wish I could bottle it up and hand it off to some other guys, too, but today, too, they attack him with the slider first pitch. He takes a borderline pitch, takes a, I believe, a changeup the next time – just slowing down, not trying to do too much. It’s a trust that we get to 3-0 there, and he’s probably going to throw a heater. We’ve got a guy in scoring position. It’s a trust deal. I trust Tyler to be disciplined enough to get a pitch he can do damage on. He does that, and then also has the maturity to stay through the middle of the field and not come off the baseball. Stone’s (Lawless) done a good job of getting to home plate. You’ve got to trust your guys and let them run, but whatever role – we’ll see whatever he settles into – but that’s one you can definitely check, where at some point you can throw him in there and he’s going to give you a quality at-bat.”
More From RTI: Tennessee Baseball vs. Missouri Game Three UPDATE Thread
On Reese Chapman admitting he made a mistake on the double steal that plated the first run for Tennessee:
“I don’t want to tell you everything now. The simplicity of it was it was supposed to be a steal-stop. There was a position there where we thought we had a chance to take both bags, right, try to bait them into a throw, and we got lucky there. It was a great jump by Blaine. He executed it, and something we’ll handle internally to make sure we’re a little more buttoned-up, but we got away with one right there.”
On Reese Chapman taking the blame for the mistake on that play and what that says about his leadership:
“He’s a stud. He’s a winner. I’m glad he’s in the building still. There was a time last summer where we thought he was going to get drafted, and all of the sudden now he’s back on campus. I think he makes everybody in the building better infinitely, not only between the lines, but in the locker room with what he brings to the table. Hunter High, fearless leader. If you hear somebody yelling that from the dugout, it’s Hunter High, I promise, but Reese is a winner and I’m very thankful he’s still a Vol.”
On Stone Lawless hitting well of late and staying in lineup:
“He is smashing balls. Having great at-bats and little stuff like – my frame of reference is always from third – so, you can see like the pace of the separation, how guys are taking pitches. Little things I look for in recruiting – body language between pitches or how they navigate their at-bat. He’s doing a lot of things that will put him in a position to have success long term and. But he’s hitting fastballs well, better than he has last year. He’s laying on breaking balls too, so when you take some walks and also squeeze the strikes on a little bit like he is, it really doesn’t give us a choice.
“We’re going to have to keep putting him in there. We talked about even catching him today, but Levi (Clark) has done a great job back there too, so we’re trying to keep the big picture in mind and making sure we’re not gassing out Stone too early in the year. Those two have been great because those catchers, they’re both capable of doing it, but to see him swinging the bat, that’s what we expect from him too.”
On if Garrett Wright is getting closer to being able to catch in games:
“We got him bullpens (for the) first time this last week, so we’ll try to get him to live. There’s going to be some progression there. He’s slid into base, and so it’s… he’s fine, but it’s just something we want to be careful with. He’s more than capable and Trent (Grindlinger) is as well. We’re very, very stacked at the catcher position, but right now it’s about winning games and getting guys in the right spot. That’s been the coolest thing about G (Garrett Wright). He’s never said anything about, ‘I need this or that.’ He just wants to play ball and help us win, so he’s fitting in good with that group.”
On responding well with wins on Saturday and Sunday after Friday loss:
“Massive. It’s the best way to win the series in the SEC. I told the guys on Friday night that’s what we’re in the business of doing is trying to find ways to win two games a weekend, right? So, there’s going to be some gut punches thrown back and forth. The door swings both ways, but you got to be able to hook it up. I just thought today there was no giddiness when we got up, maybe learning from last week and just gas pedal, ‘Hey, how do we get one more run, or how do we keep attacking the strike zone?’ And just the general understanding Sundays in the SEC can be crazy. The scores and the back and forth. So, I think just having more feel and expectation of what they’re walking into lets them have a better feel for how to navigate today.”
