Committee of pitchers blank Alabama A&M in Vols' home opener
In Tennessee's trip to Arizona for the MLB Desert Invitational, the Vols threw their trio of elite starting pitchers.
Chase Dollander, Chase Burns and Drew Beam played key roles in limiting their opponents' offensive output as the team gave up seven runs across the three games.
However, with Alabama A&M (3-1) coming to Knoxville for a two-game mid-week series, Tony Vitello opted to use four pitchers for two innings each in Tuesday's home opener.
This resulted in the Vols (2-2) taking a 10-0 mercy-rule win after eight innings.
Starting the game was Hollis Fanning. Last year, Fanning threw just 3.1 innings as a sophomore. During this work, he posted a 2.70 ERA and three strikeouts while giving up seven hits.
In his season debut against the Bulldogs, he pitched a pair of innings where he gave up a hit, walked one batter, hit another and struck out two. He also used a pick-off move to catch a runner at first. In this effort, he held Alabama A&M scoreless before being pulled after 32 pitches.
"Hollis (Fanning) is kind of showing he's assured strikes," said Vitello. "... A much better second inning. Kind of showed some of the stuff he showed us in scrimmages where we started him a bunch. He was very reliable as it relates to strikes."
Replacing Fanning was Jake Fitzgibbons. After making seven appearances as a freshman, Fitzgibbons was held out for the majority of last season due to an injury.
In his return, Fitzgibbons dominated. He refused to give up a hit in his two innings pitched while fanning four batters. He gave up two walks but left the runners stranded. This effort resulted in him being credited with the win.
"When (Fitzgibbons is) in the zone, he's one of our best guys," said Vitello. "... He's got about as good of stuff as anyone, especially on the left side of the mound. If he continues to pour it in the zone, he'll have some success this year."
Following Fitzgibbon's 38 pitches, freshman AJ Russell toed the slab. The Franklin, Tennessee native was ranked as the No. 14 player out of the state by Perfect Game.
In his first time taking the mound in college, Russell impressed. He pitched two innings where he gave up a single hit, struck out three and gave no free passes to hitters.
"It was great," said Vitello on Russell's performance. "For a freshman, I don't say it out loud but I'm feeling it internally when a guy has a ball in his hand how I'm feeling. He made me feel comfortable. Just with his presence, the way the ball was coming out. He's always thrown strikes. We know that's coming. It made me feel good about wearing this uniform."
Then, Jacob Bimbi entered the game. The junior college transfer saw action against UC San Diego on Sunday but ran into trouble. He walked two batters without recording an out before getting pulled.
However, against the Bulldogs, Bimbi bounced back. He still ran into some issues as he let up a hit and walked a batter in his second inning on the mound, but he managed to get out of the jam. While recording six outs, he recorded four strike outs while giving up just one hit.
Overall, each of Tennessee's four pitchers saw success in their two innings on the mound. The Vols look like they'll have plenty of options out of the bullpen as the season progresses.
Vitello also used the win as an opportunity to give his position players experience. Tennessee played 18 in the match with multiple players making their season debut.
Before being subbed out, Jared Dickey and Blake Burke put together extremely effective nights. They combined to hit 5-for-5 from the field for five RBI while both of them hit a home run.
Dickey's performance comes after struggling in his three games during the MLB Desert Invitational.
"Coming out as a leader this year, it kind of affected me those first few games trying to do too much," said Dickey. "Just being back here, being around the crowd and knowing my teammates have my back helped a lot."
Next, the Vols will be back in Lindsey Nelson Stadium to face Alabama A&M in a rematch. The game begins at 4:30 p.m. ET and airs on SEC Network+.
*****
– TALK ABOUT IT IN THE ROCKY TOP FORUM.
– ENJOY VOLREPORT WITH A PREMIUM SUBSCRIPTION.
– SUBSCRIBE TO THE VOLREPORT YOUTUBE CHANNEL.
– FOLLOW VOLREPORT ON TWITTER: @TennesseeRivals, @TMansfieldMedia, @JNichols_2121, @ByNoahTaylor, @TylerIvens, @RealTBannerman, @RyanTSylvia, @Dale_Dowden, @ShayneP_Media.