Tennessee baseball head coach Josh Elander met with the media following the Vols’ 3-2 series-opening loss to Vanderbilt Friday in Nashville.
Logan Johnstone walked it off in the 10th by driving a base-hit to left field with runners on first and second.
Elander shared his thoughts on the heartbreaking loss, detailing what he saw from starting pitcher Brandon Arvidson on the mound and Tegan Kuhns in his first bullpen action of the season.
Additionally, Elander explained his pitching decisions late in the contest and how crucial Levi Clark’s emergence has been at the plate.
RECAP: Vanderbilt Walks Off Tennessee Baseball in Series Opener
See everything Elander said after the game below.
On Tegan Kuhns’ relief outing and response after being taken out of the rotation:
“I thought it was good how he attacked the strike zone. Did a really good job of holding the runners tonight. I know Stone (Lawless) threw out a couple. Just the last one there, breaking ball gets away from him a little bit, gets a free 90 feet right there and then a good swing after that. Just thought it was time to go to the pen. But I really liked how he responded to the challenge and I thought he got better as the night went on.”
On the decision to go with Bo Rhudy and Mark Hindy at the end:
“Some of it was matchup. (Braden) Holcomb is a big strong guy. He is a guy you got circled in the lineup. So, at that point, just wanted to go to (Bo) Rhudy. Fastball up and some sliders there. Had some numbers. He’ll go that way. The same thing went into the decision with the lefty (Mark Hindy). Left on left matchup. We had the matchup we want, pitched we wanted and tip of the cap. The guy put a good swing on the ball and beats the shift right there. Good with those decisions and those guys competing in the strike zone. I just think the story of the night is offensively, we didn’t get to (Connor) Fennell’s fastball. Had plenty of opportunities to drive in runs early in the game, middle of the game, late in the game. Did some things well, but just not good enough offensively to give us a chance to win a game on Friday night on the road in the SEC.”
On what made Connor Fennell so effective for Vanderbilt:
“Just changing tempos. The tempo and the delivery. He’s always trying to fight guys on getting their eyes up. It’s been his MO and how he’s competed. Something we talked about all week, but just did a good job. Our guys did not get to the fastball. There were so many balls hit foul and he didn’t throw as many off-speed pitches as he did versus last year. But whether it was sink in the wind or whatever, we just didn’t get to the heater.”
On Brandon Arvidson’s start on the mound:
“Good. I thought he was good. I thought the poise was good. That’s what you want. He threw on the road for the first time, throwing strikes and breaking ball was good. Change was good as well. So, got him close to 90 pitches and continued to push the envelope there. Keeping the big picture in mind with him. We got a lot of confidence in (Brandon) Arvidson.”
On the decision to go with the steal-stop in the sixth inning to score their first run:
“So, it’s at that point of the game, we got a look that we like on the defense. Not swinging the bat well. Again, a lot of balls are going on the ground and usually when that defensive look is there, they’re not going to throw the ball through to second base. And they did, but it’s a win-win either way. We get two guys in scoring position or we take a run right there where runs are at a premium. So, we’ll take that right there. We got a one-run game going in the seventh inning, and we need to execute. We had chances to win the game after that and didn’t do it.”
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On Levi Clark’s resurgence and his pair of big hits late in the game:
“He’s getting better. That’s what our expectations are of him, to be right in the middle of the order, so writing him in the nine spot right now, I think that’s just kind of what is best for the team. We’ll see where we’re at tomorrow. But at the same time, he’s showing signs of being Levi, which is someone we desperately need right now.”
On what made Tegan Kuhns so effective out of the bullpen:
“Just making adjustments. We met with him. We try to over-communicate with those guys what our expectations are and, ‘Where are you at now and how do you get better going forward?’ And again, I just think how he was getting quicker to the plate, holding the running game, attacking, changeup, curveball, had both breakers going tonight. He’s good in any role for us, and I appreciate his selflessness and how he handled the challenge and went out there. He had a chance with… you know, the ball was in his hand with the game on the line. So that’s what we want.”
On how Blake Grimmer seemed after taking a foul ball off the knee:
“He just said it was really hurting when he was coming off the field right there, so we’ll get with Woody (trainer Jeff Wood) and figure out what we got, but it’s kind of a tricky one, guy really sinking it, and you hit a barrel off your shin, it’s not a good feeling right there. But again, hopefully he’s feeling better tomorrow.”
On what specifically plagued the offense against Connor Fennell:
“Guys not getting to the heater. It’s a good +/- up with the heater, down with the changeup. The breaking ball’s even a slower pitch, so guys are hurrying up, speeding down, but when I’m coaching third base and there’s balls flying by me all night, that’s not a good sign. It means our guys are around the baseball, and they need to be better, period. This hasn’t been a good week for us offensively, and we’re fortunate to win a game on Tuesday, in a position to win a Friday night SEC game on the road, and really [the] difference is execution in a few spots. Those guys need to continue to get better and make adjustments because there’s plenty of good arms over there.”
