Baseball Vols poised for success

When Todd Raleigh stepped to the podium on Tuesday afternoon to speak about the upcoming 2010 Tennessee Vols baseball season, snow flurries filled the air, but the message couldn’t have been more sunny.

Raleigh, whose team finished last season with the best record in the SEC over its last 18 games, believes his Vols are poised for a big year.

“I feel excited about this season,” said Raleigh. “We’ve got a tremendous team. We’re more athletic, more physical, we’re deeper, we’re better. Combine that with the way we ended last year, the momentum we had, I feel like we’re going to have a great year, I really do. We can catch the ball, we can hit and our pitching is a lot deeper. I don’t see us having a lot of weaknesses. Now, obviously we play in the best league in the country and other teams have the same kind of programs but we’re no longer going to be outmatched.”

Last season, Raleigh was forced to play an inexperienced lineup at times, but a year later, the experience those young players gained is invaluable.

“We’re just older,” Raleigh said. “We’re no longer playing eight freshmen and sophomores, even though we don’t have many seniors, we still have a lot of SEC experience on our club.”

Bryan Morgado, who was selected by the Chicago White Sox in the third round of the 2009 Major League Baseball First Year Player Draft (102nd overall pick), returns to Tennessee for his junior season and will be Tennessee’s Friday night starter.

“Bryan is going to be our Friday night starter,” Raleigh said. “He has one of the best arms in the country. He probably hasn’t pitched up to what he’s capable of the last couple of years, but he’s turned a corner. He’s much more of a pitcher now and not such a thrower. Before, he wanted to throw a ball 90 miles per hour but you have to hit your spots. He’s really matured.”

Morgado began the 2009 season as a starter but moved to the bullpen in April. He finished 4-2 with a 6.36 ERA and led the team with 75 strikeouts.

Steven Gruver and Stephen McCray will be Tennessee’s second and third starters.

“Right now, Steven Gruver, a left hander, is going to start on Saturday,” Raleigh said. “He’s a sophomore. He’s one of those many freshmen we pitched last year. A lot of you guys don’t know a lot about Steven, but he’s pretty good. He had an unbelievable summer. He’s had a great fall and spring so far.”

“The third starter is going to be Stephen McCray and it’s been a hard fought battle with him and Steve Crnkovich and Rob Catapano. We’re going to go with Stephen. He’s a senior, hard throwing right hander. He’s really come on. He’s developed a new cutter, his change-up is a little bit better and he’s now throwing a two-seam vs. four-seam fastball. That may not mean a lot to you guys, but the ball moves a lot more. He’s more of a pitcher as well.”

In the outfield, Tennessee will have some flexibility in the lineup but the starters are expected to be P.J Polk in left field, Josh Liles in center field, and Charely Thurber in right field.

The infield will consist of pre-season All-American Cody Hawn at first base, either Cody Grisham or Khayyan Norfolk at second, returning All-SEC freshman Zach Osborne at shortstop, Matt Duffy at third base and All-SEC catcher Blake Forsythe behind the plate.

With his current roster, Raleigh believes he has a top 25 team and isn’t shy about sharing his expectations.

“I think NCAAs are very reasonable,” Raliegh said. “I think making a run at Omaha, in a three-game set, I like our chances. Especially if we can host a regional. That’s what we want, is to have a good enough regular season where we can host in our great new facility. I think those are very reasonable (goals). I’d be shocked if we’re not an NCAA team. I’ve had a lot of NCAA teams as a coach. I won 10 championships as a player and a coach, this is a good team. The attitude is right and we’re going to have a good year.”

Clearly, excitement surrounds the Tennessee baseball program heading in to Todd Raleigh’s third season as the Vols’ head coach and the recent renovations to Lindsey Nelson Stadium only heighten the enthusiasm.

“I think we’ve put ourselves in the upper tier of the SEC as far as facilities,” Raleigh said. It looks great and it’s very functional. The cage is going up. I think it puts a new aura around our program. It’s going to give the fans a new way to watch games at Tennessee that they’ve never had before.”

Tennessee opens the 2010 season on Friday against Xavier.