Vols 'bouncing around with a little more energy' after time off before Clemson Regional

If Tennessee baseball had stuck around at the SEC Tournament last week, making a run to Sunday’s championship game for a third straight year, the Vols would have been shorthanded along the way. 

“If we would have stayed in Hoover for a maximum amount of days,” Tennessee coach Tony Vitello said during his press conference on Tuesday, “there would have been several days where guys were not available.”

If there’s one thing Tennessee can’t seem to shake this season, according to Vitello, it’s illnesses. 

“We’ll look back on this year regardless of how things go moving forward,” Vitello said, “and a big theme will be illnesses or sickness. I don’t what it is. I know other people have experienced it, but I think we’ve experienced it to the max. 

“It started in the fall and it has not stopped. Cal Stark came back yesterday for the first time after a couple of days of being sick.”

Up Next: No. 2 Tennessee vs. No. 3 Charlotte, Friday, 6 p.m. ET, ESPNU

In hindsight, maybe it wasn’t all that bad that the Vols got bounced in Hoover in the single-elimination first round last Tuesday, losing 3-0 and managing just one hit against Texas A&M.

Now Tennessee (38-19) looks to reset before facing Charlotte (34-26) on Friday (6 p.m. Eastern Time, ESPNU) in the Clemson Regional to start NCAA Tournament play.

The Vols and 49ers, the No. 2 and No. 3 seeds in the Clemson Regional, respectively, were sent to Clemson along with Lipscomb, the No. 4 seed. Clemson (43-17) and Lipscomb (36-24) play the early game Friday afternoon (1 p.m. ET, ESPN+), with winners and losers matching up on Saturday in the double-elimination four-team bracket. 

“It allowed a few of those guys to recover and maybe avoid other guys from getting sick,” Vitello said, “if that makes sense. They’ve been allowed to rest their immune system — I’m certainly not Dr. (Chris) Klenck — but also just rest in general.”

Tony Vitello: ‘It’s a new Opening Day’ for Vol

With nine off days between games, Vitello said he has started to see a difference in his team this week. After all, the postseason — both conference tournaments and the NCAA Tournament — is a fresh start for everyone. 

“You see guys bouncing around with a little bit more energy,” he said, “and for us, because we strategize with our bullpen and also just kind of getting the pitching thing sorted (out), I think some guys had been pushed pretty good and were starting to feel a little bit sore. 

“Those guys almost get to reset the way the season will reset. I don’t know how they do it on the scoreboard, but I believe the batting averages will be .000. It’s a new Opening Day, except it’s a four-team tournament. It’s a part of the season, and yet it’s separate.

“One thing that we’ll be able to do,” Vitello continued, “is almost have that physical and mental feeling of Opening Day because of that gap between our last game and the first game against Charlotte.”