Tennessee baseball utility man Chris Newstrom is not with the Vols this weekend as they travel to Starkville to face Mississippi State due to an “internal issue” a UT spokesperson told RTI on Thursday night. The issue is not expected to lead to an extended absence for the the sophomore.
Newstrom entered his sophomore season with sizable expectations but has failed to make a consistent impact to this point in the season. He’s played in 23 games and started 15 but is hitting just .180 with one home run, three additional extra-base hits and six total RBIs.
The Scottsdale, Arizona native can play both infield and outfield but has fallen out of the rotation and has not has an at-bat since March 31 against Austin Peay. Newstrom’s last SEC at-bat was on March 22 against Missouri. He’s started only two games in SEC play.
Last season as a true freshman, Newstrom started 13 games, played in 33 games and hit .351 with four home runs and nine total extra-base hits.
More From RTI: Tennessee Baseball Announces Weekend Rotation For Mississippi State Series
Tennessee baseball is desperately looking to stack SEC wins as it heads to Starkville this weekend. One month into conference play, Tennessee is just 4-8 with a multitude of close losses due to offensive and bullpen issues.
The last two weekends have been particularly brutal for Tennessee as they won just one game in series against Vanderbilt and LSU. The Commodores swept Tennessee, walking off all three games including a pair of games in extra innings. Tennessee blew late inning leads in both of its losses against LSU.
Mississippi State enters the weekend 7-5 in SEC play but is coming off a weekend sweep against Georgia.
First pitch for the weekend series between Tennessee and Mississippi State is at 7 p.m. ET on Friday night at Dudy Noble Field. The SEC Network+ is streaming the game.
