Kyle Booker Transferring To Oral Roberts
On Sunday, Tennessee outfielder Kyle Booker announced that he will be transferring to Oral Roberts for next season via his Instagram. He will spend his final season with the Golden Eagles after playing in three straight years for the Vols. The post is captioned, "Excited to announce that I will be finishing my academic and athletic career at Oral Roberts University! Can't wait to see what the future holds. Let's do it!" Booker had an exceptional freshman season in 2021 in Knoxville at the plate. He batted .310 and had an on-base percentage of .382. He also tallied up 10 RBI.
However, Booker struggled more at the plate as his career progressed at Tennessee. He batted below .240 in both 2022 and 2023 on slightly fewer at-bats than in 2021. He has never been an extra base or long ball hitter, with just 14 combined doubles, triples, and home runs throughout his three seasons on Rocky Top. With the copious amounts of transfers Tony Vitello brought in this past cycle, a change of scenery may do Booker some good.
Tennessee OF Kyle Booker pinch-hitting against UNC Asheville in Knoxville, Tennessee, on March 28, 2023. (Photo by Saul Young of the News-Sentinel, USA Today Sports)
As for his new playing destination, the Golden Eagles were a very good baseball team during the 2023 season. They finished the season 52-14 overall, including a trip to Omaha for the College World Series. That is the most wins in a season in program history. ORU also made it their first trip to the College World Series since 1978. Once in Omaha, they got a 6-5 win over TCU which was unfortunately followed up by two straight losses to Florida and the Horned Frogs when the two squads met a second time. The win in the first game over TCU was the second Omaha victory in program history, along with an 11-0 rout of North Carolina back in 1978. Booker is in the hands of a good program and will bring the skill needed in SEC baseball to Tulsa, Oklahoma, for the Golden Eagles.
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