Exclusive: Riley Nelson Reflects on Vanderbilt Baseball Career, Grueling Decision To Leave It
NASHVILLE—In retrospect, Riley Nelson recalls this time a year ago being defined by its back-and-fourth nature. He was set to be an MLB Draft pick, but he says he was closer than anyone realized to returning to Vanderbilt for one more season.
Nelson remembers his mind racing back-and-fourth between the two options in the hours before and after working out on Vanderbilt’s campus with his Vanderbilt teammates. But, the decision became simplified when Nelson was drafted in the fifth round by the Cleveland Guardians. Nelson repeatedly declares that he made the right decision to sign, almost as if he’s trying to remind himself, but he says it was the toughest choice he’s had to make at any point in his career.
Even to this day–nearly a year after Nelson signed with the Guardians–all anyone around him will say about his Vanderbilt tenure is how much he enjoyed it and how he changed his life. More than anyone, he wanted to return. But, he knew that he had to go.
“It was so tough,” Nelson told Vandy on SI. “It was so hard for me to leave. It was just a tough pill to swallow because I only had one year with those guys and I wanted to have one more. It just sucked leaving. It felt like I was leaving something behind.”
Nelson tried to watch Vanderbilt any time he could between his own spring training and minor league schedule, but admits that it was difficult for him to do at times. He repeats, again, that he thinks he made the right choice to go, but that it’s easy for him to slip into the ‘what if’ game in regard to what could have been if he returned to school.
It’s not as if Nelson appoints himself as a potential savior of a Vanderbilt team that missed the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 19 years, but he doesn’t appear to be of the mindset that he would’ve regretted returning had he known Vanderbilt wouldn’t make the tournament. He doesn't know exactly how it would’ve played out if he returned, but he doesn’t describe his love for Vanderbilt’s program as one that’s conditional based on results.
What Nelson recalls more than anything Vanderbilt did or didn’t do on the field in his time there is the way it changed him and the trajectory of his career. When he arrived as a junior college transfer, he didn’t know if he belonged and struggled early on, but Vanderbilt coach Tim Corbin believed in him and platformed him to put together a season that made him a legitimate prospect.
As Nelson reflects on his Vanderbilt career, he remembers undergoing a drastic increase in maturity, learning how to stay in the present and becoming connected to those who played alongside him more than he expected to.
“Regardless of if I played well or not at Vandy, I made the right decision to go there, even if I redshirted,” Nelson said. “Vanderbilt was just the right fit for me. It was everything I was looking for, that I needed at the time.”
Perhaps it was his JUCO background coming into play, but Nelson–more than any other Vanderbilt player in recent memory–didn’t appear to take a thing for granted. Everything about finally getting an SEC opportunity after being overlooked for the entirety of his career was meaningful to Nelson.
The community meant something to him. The idea of playing on national television meant something to him. Vanderbilt’s wealth of resources and equipment was almost jarring to him at first. So was getting to experience a true SEC rivalry in its prime.
Nelson was drafted alongside former Tennessee standouts Dean Curley and Cannon Peebles and says he’s developed a relationship with each of them. He clarifies that he hasn’t softened his stance on Tennessee, though. Nelson has embraced rivalry since he was a kid because of his college football fandom, and he still gets riled up talking about his biggest college rival.
When Vanderbilt swept Tennessee in the spring, there may not have been anyone in Vanderbilt’s fanbase that was happier than Nelson. Nelson was yelling at the TV, hanging on every pitch that was thrown. When Vanderbilt first baseman Tommy Goodin hit a walk-off homer to clinch the sweep, he erupted.
“When I got to Vanderbilt, Corbs was like ‘hey, we don't like these guys,’” Nelson said. “If you beat these guys, it just feels really good. So, I mean, having that mentality of wanting to go beat these guys, it's personal. Like you make, you make things personal. I think that's why we've had success the past couple years against those guys.”
Nelson was part of the first Vanderbilt team to beat Tennessee in a series since the 2021 season and was the boldest player in regard to the rivalry at the time, saying in a press conference that recruits should pick Vanderbilt over Tennessee after Vanderbilt beat it in the SEC Tournament.
Vanderbilt beating Tennessee is among the best on-field memories that Nelson generated as a Vanderbilt player, but it’s almost miniscule as he looks back on what his tenure meant to him.
“Being able to represent Vanderbilt, it was just a dream come true,” Nelson said. “It still is. It’s like ‘dang, like I went there. I played there.’ It was just so surreal the whole time.”
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Joey Dwyer is the lead writer on Vanderbilt Commodores On SI. He found his first love in college sports at nearby Lipscomb University and decided to make a career of telling its best stories. He got his start doing a Notre Dame basketball podcast from his basement as a 14-year-old during COVID and has since aimed to make that 14-year-old proud. Dwyer has covered Vanderbilt sports for three years and previously worked for 247 Sports and Rivals. He contributes to Seth Davis' Hoops HQ, Basket Under Review and Mainstreet Nashville.
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