Report: Vanderbilt hires Jason Esposito as hitting coach

According to Kendall Rogers of D1 Baseball, Vanderbilt has hired Jason Esposito to be the program’s next hitting coach. Esposito has been working with the Cleveland Guardians over the past few years but now makes a return to the college ranks. After spending his playing days in Nashville, Esposito is back with the Commodores.

“SCOOP: @VandyBoys is expected to hire former standout player Jason Esposito as its new hitting coach, I’m told,” Rogers said via X. “Esposito replaces Jayson King and has spent the last 3 seasons as the assistant hitting coach for @CleGuardians. He has spent 8 total years in the #Guardians org.

Esposito’s last season of college baseball was in 2011, where he put up monster numbers. In 61 games played, he recorded an average of .335 with six home runs and 55 RBIs. An OPS just a slight under .900 showed his overall ability at the plate for a talented Vanderbilt team.

The Commodores wound up making it to the College World Series for the first time in program history. Four games were played in Omaha but unfortunately, the final one resulted in elimination. Vanderbilt met Florida in the semifinals and needed two wins to advance to the CWS championship series. They did not even get one, ending the school’s most successful season to that point.

Now, head coach Tim Corbin is hoping that having Esposito back can rekindle some of the magic. Getting into the NCAA Tournament has not been a struggle in recent seasons. Advancing has been, though, not making it to a Super Regional since 2021.

Vanderbilt coming off disappointing end to 2025 season

This was supposed to be a year where Vanderbilt could compete for a national championship. When the selection committee announced regional hosts, Nashville was included. Things got better one day later when the Commodores were named the No. 1 overall seed.

Getting an early win against Wright State was a positive sign before everything went south. Louisville won the 1-0 game before matching up with Wright State once again. This one resulted in a loss for Vanderbilt, eliminating them before the regional final.

Louisville wound up advancing and made its way to the College World Series. A major opportunity missed for Vanderbilt after setting itself up for success during the regular season. The postseason drought will continue on into 2026 but expectations are not going to be changing anytime soon.