You may be surprised to see that Vanderbilt is only 10-8 in the conference on the season. They've actually dropped three of the six league series they played, including a surprising series loss last weekend at Tennessee.
But then, let's think back to the last time we went to Nashville. That was also in week 7 of league play. Vanderbilt had lost three league series then too, including one at Tennessee. They were only 8-10 in the conference coming into our series. They swept us, got hot, and went on to win the national championship (I actually think Vanderbilt was a better team in both 2013 and 2015, it's funny how it shakes out sometimes). So at 10-8 now, I'm sure it's not panic time by any stretch in Nashville, but this is a very important series for them and could well be a huge determining factor in their seeding come Memorial Day.
Vanderbilt is 31-10 overall and a very strong 23-4 at home. They dropped their league opening series, as we well know, to Miss State in Nashville. Vanderbilt rebounded and swept a series from Missouri, despite Tanner Houck's best effort in the middle game. Vandy returned home and took a series from South Carolina (we know a little something about that), then went on the road and dropped a series at LSU, playing probably their worst game of the year in the middle game on Friday night down there. Vanderbilt returned home and won a hard fought series from Kentucky (UK isn't a powerhouse this year, but they really make you earn it, it seems). Vanderbilt followed that up with a series loss at Tennessee, in which the Vols won the latter two games by a total of three runs.
Friday night, we'll square off with Jordan Sheffield, a lanky third year sophomore from Tullahoma Tennessee. Pitching on Friday night for Vanderbilt almost always means that you're a stud, and Sheffield is no different. He has a 6-2 record in 10 appearances, all starts, and has a 2.54 ERA. He's thrown 63 2/3 innings and has 81 strikeouts against 25 walks. Opponents are only hitting .204 against him.
Saturday, we'll see Kyle Wright, a big sophomore righty from Huntsville. Wright's numbers are also very strong. He's 4-3 in 10 appearances, all starts, and has thrown 52 2/3 innings en route to a 1.88 ERA. He has 58 K's and 19 BB's on the year. Opposing hitters are batting .242 against him.
Vanderbilt has left things TBA for Sunday. They've been going with Patrick Raby, a stocky freshman righty from Knoxville. The former Farragut Admiral will likely be a mainstay in Vanderbilt's rotation for each of the next three seasons. I don't know why they're TBA Sunday. Perhaps there is an injury there or maybe they want to use Raby in the bullpen. Anyway, I guess we'll figure out Sunday when we get there.
Offensively, Vanderbilt is lead by Jaren Kendall. The sophomore OF from Holmen Wisconsin is hitting .345/.407/.582 with 7 HRs and 44 RBI. He's also 19/27 in steals. We'll probably see Kendall hitting leadoff tomorrow night. He has hit 2nd for them some as well. He can play LF or RF.
Bryan Reynolds is a familiar name and an extremely talented hitter. The switch hitting junior from Brentwood Tennessee will hit 3rd and play CF for the 'Dores. He's hitting .331/.463/.608. He has 9 HRs and 41 RBIs. 21 of his 49 hits on the year have gone for extra bases. He's struck out 38 times on the year, but has also drawn 36 walks. This guy is a very, very tough out.
The good news is, those are their power guys. None of their regular hitters have more than 2 HRs (Kyle Smith has 3, but does not have enough ABs to qualify). They make up for it in OBP, though, sporting a .382 figure as a team (ours is .339). Look at a guy like Will Toffey, who has played a lot of baseball for them, and is only hitting .218, but has has .408 OBP. These guys have only grounded into 13 DPs all year, they've attempted 88 stolen bases (converting 58, not a great percentage, but they're clearly not afraid to run), they've hit 75 doubles this year... I could go on, but I say all this to say that they're an extremely balanced lineup and there really are no easy outs there.
With Vandy going to Texas A&M next weekend, and sitting at 10-8 now, you can bet that there is quite a bit of urgency on their side this weekend. Vanderbilt has swept us two years in a row and we haven't won a series against them since 2008. In a lot of ways, especially on that field, these guys may be a worse matchup for us than was Florida last weekend. But, we're playing some good baseball ourselves and I have to think that we are in as good of a mental place as we've been in quite awhile. Much like last weekend was a measuring stick series for our program, this weekend is a measuring stick for this season.
But then, let's think back to the last time we went to Nashville. That was also in week 7 of league play. Vanderbilt had lost three league series then too, including one at Tennessee. They were only 8-10 in the conference coming into our series. They swept us, got hot, and went on to win the national championship (I actually think Vanderbilt was a better team in both 2013 and 2015, it's funny how it shakes out sometimes). So at 10-8 now, I'm sure it's not panic time by any stretch in Nashville, but this is a very important series for them and could well be a huge determining factor in their seeding come Memorial Day.
Vanderbilt is 31-10 overall and a very strong 23-4 at home. They dropped their league opening series, as we well know, to Miss State in Nashville. Vanderbilt rebounded and swept a series from Missouri, despite Tanner Houck's best effort in the middle game. Vandy returned home and took a series from South Carolina (we know a little something about that), then went on the road and dropped a series at LSU, playing probably their worst game of the year in the middle game on Friday night down there. Vanderbilt returned home and won a hard fought series from Kentucky (UK isn't a powerhouse this year, but they really make you earn it, it seems). Vanderbilt followed that up with a series loss at Tennessee, in which the Vols won the latter two games by a total of three runs.
Friday night, we'll square off with Jordan Sheffield, a lanky third year sophomore from Tullahoma Tennessee. Pitching on Friday night for Vanderbilt almost always means that you're a stud, and Sheffield is no different. He has a 6-2 record in 10 appearances, all starts, and has a 2.54 ERA. He's thrown 63 2/3 innings and has 81 strikeouts against 25 walks. Opponents are only hitting .204 against him.
Saturday, we'll see Kyle Wright, a big sophomore righty from Huntsville. Wright's numbers are also very strong. He's 4-3 in 10 appearances, all starts, and has thrown 52 2/3 innings en route to a 1.88 ERA. He has 58 K's and 19 BB's on the year. Opposing hitters are batting .242 against him.
Vanderbilt has left things TBA for Sunday. They've been going with Patrick Raby, a stocky freshman righty from Knoxville. The former Farragut Admiral will likely be a mainstay in Vanderbilt's rotation for each of the next three seasons. I don't know why they're TBA Sunday. Perhaps there is an injury there or maybe they want to use Raby in the bullpen. Anyway, I guess we'll figure out Sunday when we get there.
Offensively, Vanderbilt is lead by Jaren Kendall. The sophomore OF from Holmen Wisconsin is hitting .345/.407/.582 with 7 HRs and 44 RBI. He's also 19/27 in steals. We'll probably see Kendall hitting leadoff tomorrow night. He has hit 2nd for them some as well. He can play LF or RF.
Bryan Reynolds is a familiar name and an extremely talented hitter. The switch hitting junior from Brentwood Tennessee will hit 3rd and play CF for the 'Dores. He's hitting .331/.463/.608. He has 9 HRs and 41 RBIs. 21 of his 49 hits on the year have gone for extra bases. He's struck out 38 times on the year, but has also drawn 36 walks. This guy is a very, very tough out.
The good news is, those are their power guys. None of their regular hitters have more than 2 HRs (Kyle Smith has 3, but does not have enough ABs to qualify). They make up for it in OBP, though, sporting a .382 figure as a team (ours is .339). Look at a guy like Will Toffey, who has played a lot of baseball for them, and is only hitting .218, but has has .408 OBP. These guys have only grounded into 13 DPs all year, they've attempted 88 stolen bases (converting 58, not a great percentage, but they're clearly not afraid to run), they've hit 75 doubles this year... I could go on, but I say all this to say that they're an extremely balanced lineup and there really are no easy outs there.
With Vandy going to Texas A&M next weekend, and sitting at 10-8 now, you can bet that there is quite a bit of urgency on their side this weekend. Vanderbilt has swept us two years in a row and we haven't won a series against them since 2008. In a lot of ways, especially on that field, these guys may be a worse matchup for us than was Florida last weekend. But, we're playing some good baseball ourselves and I have to think that we are in as good of a mental place as we've been in quite awhile. Much like last weekend was a measuring stick series for our program, this weekend is a measuring stick for this season.
