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Tony Vitello reacts to trio of second round picks for the Vols

On3 imageby: Eric Cain07/14/25_Cainer
AJ Russell, Tennessee
AJ Russell, Tennessee - © Saul Young/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK

Tony Vitello, who was on the MLB Network set providing draft analysis for the first round, was quick to comment on a trio of second round draft picks for the Tennessee Vols on Sunday night.   

Tennessee right-handed pitcher AJ Russell was selected in the second round of the 2025 Major League Baseball Draft by the Texas Rangers with the No. 52 overall pick. He became the fifth Tennessee player drafted on Sunday night.

“Congrats to AJ,” Vitello said. “They might be dreaming [Zach] Wheeler here type comp if he can improve his secondary stuff. I think, for now, just focusing on who AJ is.

“Freshman year, he’s on a staff with [Seth] Halvorsen, [Chase] Burns, [Drew] Beam, [Chase] Dollander – and he fit in. He was the type of guy we thought was getting squeezed out of innings because that staff is so talented. Kind of runs into an injury after exploding onto the scene as a prospect and potential top-10 pick in this draft.”

Tennessee sophomore infielder Dean Curley was selected in the second round of the 2025 Major League Baseball Draft by the Cleveland Guardians with the No. 64 overall pick. The slot value assigned to the pick is $1,382,300.

“I love Dean and and I think Dean shouldered more weight than any player in the country this year and played well doing that,” the coach praised.

Tennessee right-handed pitcher Tanner Franklin has been selected in the second round of the 2025 Major League Baseball Draft by the St. Louis Cardinals with the No. 72 overall pick. He joins teammate Liam Doyle who was drafted by the organization with the No. 5 overall pick in the draft. The slot value assigned with the pick is $1,145,900.

“Tanner Franklin is the opposite. He came in – not a great year last year. Kind of a fresh start, though,” Vitello reflected. “Frank Anderson, our pitching coach, just kind of stripped everything down, calmed down his delivery and the velo actually ticked up as the strikes went up as well.

“You guys said it, not me. It could be the steal of the draft because it’s an easy 100 mile an hour arm and he is in very early stages of his development overall.”

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