Vanderbilt Eyes Key Returns from Austin Nye, Colin Barczi After Loss to Indiana
Vanderbilt Baseball’s bats went quiet on Tuesday, and the team dropped its midweek contest with the Indiana Hoosiers 5-1. Shut out for most of the game, the Commodores failed to mount any momentum on offense and squandered any momentum they built from the weekend. It’s not all bad news, though: It appears that additional help may be on its way.
The Commodores have been bitten by the injury bug early on in 2026, with a plethora of pitchers — including Saturday starter Austin Nye — along with catcher Colin Barczi being sidelined with ailments. That’s been a major catalyst for Vanderbilt’s middling 13-9 record and early season struggles. Before winning its SEC opening series against LSU this past weekend, the Commodores were dead last in the conference standings.
“I just don’t know,” Corbin said earlier this month. “We went into the winter feeling pretty good about the health. We check around everything. I don’t know how these things happen but they do.”
Now, though, two of its most important pieces seem close to a return.
Austin Nye, who exited his Feb. 28 start against the Arizona Wildcats after just one inning, is dealing with biceps soreness and has yet to return to the mound in-game. However, his injury doesn’t appear to be a long-term concern, and he could even be an option this weekend against Mississippi State.
“Yeah, I hope so,” Tim Corbin said when asked if there’s any chance Nye could return this weekend. “We can pray.”
Even if he doesn’t start in his usual Saturday role, it appears that Nye could be an option to pitch in some capacity. That would provide a massive boost for a pitching staff that’s struggled mightily over the past few weeks. Tuesday against Indiana, Tristan Bristow was thrown into an important spot and walked three batters while also allowing a home run. That effectively put the game out of reach for the Commodores, who couldn’t rally to erase the deficit.
The inexperienced Bristow’s appearance in a high-leverage spot was just the latest example of the hand that pitching coach Scott Brown has been forced to play given the health issues of his staff. Nye’s return would help ease that burden — though it’s unclear how it would affect the rest of the current rotation.
Freshman Wyatt Nadeau — who took Nye’s spot in the Saturday role — earned SEC Freshman of the Week honors after his 10-strikeout performance against LSU. While he’d perhaps be the first option to kick back to the bullpen, Sunday starter Nate Taylor might be the better choice to be delegated to a relief role upon Nye’s return. Taylor has struggled to find a rhythm on Sundays, pitching to a 7.45 ERA across five starts. Command issues have bitten the Georgia transfer of late, as he’s walked six batters and plunked an additional three over his last two outings.
“We talked about [the plan when Nye returns] but haven’t confirmed anything,” Corbin said. “We have to see if Nye pitches and then if he pitches we don’t know what day. So it’s still open for discussion.”
Still, taking Nadeau out of the rotation right now — especially given Taylor’s struggles — feels like the wrong move.
On the offensive side, Colin Barczi went through pregame warmups on Tuesday and was considered a potential option to pinch hit against Indiana. The junior catcher — who slugged three home runs on opening day against TCU — has missed the last 17 games with a shoulder injury suffered sliding into a base.
Colin Barczi went through a pretty full pregame warmup on the field just now.
— Dylan Tovitz (@dtovitz) March 17, 2026
Still haven’t seen him throw, but he doesn’t appear too far off from a return — likely as a DH at the start. pic.twitter.com/jw7YCumVEo
“I’d love to see us get Barczi back this weekend,” Corbin said after Tuesday’s loss. “We were hoping we could potentially get him to pinch hit, but it wasn’t today, so we’ll see. Hopefully we can get him in a ball game.”
It’s likely Barczi will first return as a Designated Hitter before getting back behind the plate.
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Dylan Tovitz is a sophomore at Vanderbilt University, originally from Livingston, New Jersey. In addition to writing for Vanderbilt on SI, he serves as a deputy sports editor for the Vanderbilt Hustler and co-produces and hosts ‘Dores Unlocked, a weekly video show about Commodore sports. Outside the newsroom, he is a campus tour guide and an avid New York sports fan with a particular passion for baseball. He also enjoys listening to country and classic rock music and staying active through tennis and baseball.
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