Full rundown: Tennessee baseball makes program history with MLB Draft picks
This 2021 baseball season produced a historic run for Tony Vitello’s Tennessee Volunteers.
So it would make sense that the Vols had an equally historic start to the 2021 MLB Draft.
Between Sunday and Monday, five Tennessee players and three UT signees were selected.
Per Tennessee Stats & Info, Monday’s five draftees from the Vols’ run to Omaha marks the first time in Tennessee program history that UT has had five players go in the first 10 rounds.
But before we get more in-depth on some of those key players who put the Vols in the CWS, let’s look at the guys who could — and won’t — push Tennessee to Omaha in the future.
Firstly, a note on Chase Burns, the 6-foot-5 pitcher from Murfreesboro whose fastball touches 100 mph: he’s confirmed that he’s headed to Rocky Top.
The news is exceptional for Tennessee, which experienced the downside of good recruiting on Sunday night.
Georgia native and UT signee Brady House was taken No. 11 overall by the Washington Nationals, and a report from Maria Torres has indicated that House will do as expected, forgoing his option for college in Knoxville to enter the pros.
Up next came Ryan Spikes, a Tennessee shortstop signee who was taken with pick No. 100 in the third round by the Tampa Bay Rays.
Contrary to House, though, Spikes took to Twitter on Monday to post a picture of himself in a Tennessee uniform. This would indicate, unofficially of course, that he’s still headed to Rocky Top.
There’s no word yet on Dayton Dooney, the Arizona transfer who committed to Tennessee. The Kansas City Royals snagged Dooney in Monday’s sixth round with pick No. 169.
However, between Spikes and Dooney came the first selection of UT’s CWS roster: Chad Dallas.
Dallas was taken in the fourth round at pick No. 121, and he’ll head north to Toronto as a member of the Blue Jays.
In 2021, the Texas-based right-hander started all 17 of his appearances as a Vol. He also finished with a win-loss record of 11-2 and notched 122 strikeouts with a 4.19 ERA after going 3-0 during a pandemic-shortened 2020 season.
Moreover, Dallas was a reliable starter for Tony Vitello during the Vols’ run to the CWS, and his bespectacled, energetic demeanor earned a “hard-nosed” description from D1 Baseball’s Kendall Rogers.
After Dallas came a familiar, hard-hitting shortstop: Liam Spence. The Australia native and Tennessee leadoff hitter was selected by the Chicago Cubs in the fifth round, with the 154th overall pick.
Spence was a consistent presence at the plate and in the field for Tennessee, racking up a .338 batting average and a .981 fielding percentage through his time in Knoxville.
“You will not find many shortstops in this draft as smooth as (Spence),” said Rogers. “He might not make you leave the ballpark going, ‘Wow,’ but he can make all the plays.”
Max Ferguson came off the board next, as San Diego nabbed Tennessee’s second baseman with the 160th overall pick in the fifth round.
The Florida native batted .258 through his Tennessee career, starting 23 games in 34 appearances. He also slugged .461 this season and had a .978 fielding percentage at UT, with several diving grabs from his spot in the infield and a memorable walk-off home run to beat No. 1 Arkansas.
The next pick came with a new shade of orange, as the Baltimore Orioles snagged UT catcher Connor Pavolony with the 197th overall pick in the seventh round. The Georgia native batted .259 in his Tennessee career, starting 46 of 49 games his senior season.
Moreover, he finished his career with an excellent .454 slugging percentage and a .987 fielding percentage after going a perfect 1.000 in 12 games last year.
Finally, Tennessee’s last pick of the draft came in its most consistent player: third baseman Jake Rucker. Ironically, Rucker will be heading to the home of Drew Gilbert, as the Minnesota Twins took Rucker with pick No. 219 in the seventh round.
Because of that consistency, Vitello called Rucker “steady Eddy” earlier this year. Rucker batted .311 through three years at Tennessee, and he slugged .520 this season.
In total, eight UT-affiliated players were selected. Approximate signing bonuses can be found below, courtesy of Ryan Schumpert of Rocky Top Insider.
It should be interesting to see if other Vols, especially those from the run to Omaha, land on MLB rosters in tomorrow’s 10 rounds or in the coming days.
No matter their destinations, though, one thing is for sure: the legacy this 2021 team left won’t soon be forgotten.