AJ Russell injury update: Tony Vitello reveals Tennessee pitcher's health entering 2025 season

AJ Russell is set to enter his third season on Rocky Top in 2025, but it may take some time before he’s on the mound for Tennessee this year.

Russell was limited during his sophomore season and ultimately required Tommy John surgery in June after being Tennessee’s opening-day starter. The timeline for Russell was roughly 8-10 months, which has made many optimistic for a mid-season return.

Ahead of spring training, head coach Tony Vitello revealed the latest on Russell’s recovery.

“I think so,” Vitello said. “… I think he’s in line with what he should be. I made the comment a couple of times, by the halfway point [of the regular season], he’ll be pitching for us. All of us would like that to be sooner but there’s some steps along the way to knock out.”

Due to his injury, Russell pitched just 14.1 innings across six appearances for the Vols in 2024. Four of those appearances were starts, and finished the season with a 0-1 record and a 5.02 ERA. He logged 21 strikeouts compared to eight walks during his limited time on the mound.

As a freshman in 2023, Russell appeared in nine games and made zero starts. He finished the season with a .90 ERA across 10.0 innings pitched during his first year with the Vols. Impressively, Russell logged 15 strikeouts against 30 batters faced. He allowed five hits on the season, never giving up a home run in the process.

“[Russell] went from a skinny kid and then growing into his body and different transformations, he looks so good physically right now,” Vitello continued. “I think that’s a tribute to him taking care of himself and making his comeback or rehab go as smoothly as possible. … AJ has really evolved into a kid who’s comfortable in his own skin, which was not the case when he first got here, willing to ask, say, do whatever and also willing to take on a leadership role, which is really necessary.

“I don’t think he really needs to go outside of who he is. But he’s in a different place in those two categories. Physically and also the mentality or personality piece.”

As Russell finishes up rehab in the next couple of months, his head coach believes these two aspects of his game will aid him in returning to form in short order.

“When he does come back, I think that will only help his pitching,” he said.

Tennessee will open the season on Feb. 14 in a three-game series against Hofstra at home.