Welcome to the first game week of the season for Tennessee baseball. The Volunteers will open the Josh Elander era this weekend with a three-game series against Nicholls, and we now know who the three starting pitchers will be. Elander named Tegan Kuhns, Landon Mack and Evan Blanco as his top three to begin the season while speaking to the media on Monday.
“We’ll roll with Tegan Kuhns on Friday,” Elander said. “We’ll go Landon Mack on Saturday, and then Evan Blanco on Sunday. Think that puts us in the best position to have success out of the gate. I think you can make the argument where you can mix and match those guys in any capacity, but it was pretty cool. Got to call those guys one by one last night and let them know. But total confidence in all three of those guys and their ability to throw the baseball.”
Kuhns, a former big-time recruit, was in Tennessee’s rotation last season. The right-hander started ten total games for the Vols, going 2-4 with a 5.40 ERA. He finished the season with 40 strikeouts over 36 innings pitched.
Mack comes in from Rutgers, giving Tennessee another prized transfer portal addition. As a true freshman last season, Mack went 6-5 with a 4.03 ERA. He finished the season with 70 strikeouts against only 17 walks.
Blanco transfers in from Virginia to round out the rotation. The only lefty starter for Tennessee, Blanco comes in with 26 career starts under his belt. He had a 4.17 ERA for the Cavaliers, going 12-8 over the past three seasons.
“Landon, I think again, when I think of him there’s some Chase Dollander in there,” Elander said of Mack. “Just even some similarities in the delivery, but the compete factor is about as good as it gets. And the stuff is, it’s just gross to be honest. It’s really good stuff. It’s a real heater. Two breaking balls, a change that he’s made some adjustments with.
“And then Blanco, just maturity. It’s just again, you know what you’re going to get. It’s a very comforting feeling as a coach. He had, arguably, numbers wise, the best fall of any pitcher we had on the staff. But again, can really ride the heater, good separation on the change up. Has thrown in Omaha, has been in a lot of different roles.”
Elander also noted that left-hander Brandon Arvidson was “a little bit behind.” That’s another starter option for Tennessee, perhaps a bit down the road.