Former MLB Player Sings High Praise on 2022 BaseVols
Former MLB player and current college baseball analyst for the SEC Network, David Dellucci, had high praise for the 2022 Tennessee Baseball Volunteers on late Sunday night.
Dellucci serves as an analyst on SEC Network's The Rally Cap, an SEC baseball and softball highlights and analysis show on Sunday nights.
This past Sunday, Dellucci said the Vols are "the best team that college baseball has ever seen from top to bottom."
See post below via SEC Network Instagram
Dellucci, a 48-year-old that played for seven MLB teams, most known for his time with the Arizona Diamondbacks ('98-'03), has seen many college baseball teams come and go throughout his many years involved with the sport, so the praise of 'best team top to bottom' is especially noteworthy coming from the former big-league outfielder.
"Everything is going well right now, and I want to see them stay consistent," Dellucci added. "The pitching has been fantastic, but the hitting stands out. The depth on this team is amazing, and there is really nothing they can't do, just need to continue and not lose focus."
It's not far-fetched to be in Dellucci's camp, as Tennessee baseball has completely dominated the college baseball landscape in 2022.
The program records the Vols have set this spring are endless, and UT most recently outright won the SEC for the first time since 1995.
Tennessee currently leads the NCAA in home runs with 120, 14 ahead of second-place teams Maryland and Old Dominion. Six Vols have ten or more home runs, and eight have at least nine, with freshman Blake Burke having recorded his eighth and ninth bomb this past Thursday in only his 51st and 52nd at-bat.
Another one of many categories Tennessee leads in the NCAA is ERA with a 2.36, with a 3.14 being second-lowest in the country from UConn. The Vols' four-man starting rotation of Chase Burns, Chase Dollander, Blade Tidwell and Drew Beam has been magnificent this year, combining with relievers Camden Sewell, Ben Joyce, Will Mabrey, Redmond Walsh and others to make up the top pitching staff in the country.
The Vols' most recent series win over Georgia, combined with a series loss from Oregon State, resulted in Tennessee regaining a consensus No. 1 overall ranking in all six major college baseball polls, marking the eighth time UT has done so this season.
Tennessee has its sights set on going deep in the postseason, but first for the top-ranked Vols is a midweek battle against Belmont, then a weekend series in Starkville against defending National Champions Mississippi State. If Tennessee sweeps the Bulldogs, Mississippi State will finish last in the SEC West and miss the SEC Tournament after winning the College World Series.
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