Some Thoughts

#1
tigervol9802

tigervol9802

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#1
Just a few random thoughts after my first game of the season.

-Stadium renovations are very nice.

-Steckenrider made a lot of lousy two strike pitches. I'll chalk it up to an off day.

-Bullpen looked fantastic. 5 IP, 0 runs, 2 hits is a great line regardless of level or opponent.

-Thurber has an absolute cannon and came about 3 feet from the best 5 minutes a UT player has had in a while.

-Tyler Horne's at bat intro is great.

-I got to see the one thing I wanted with the 90 second clock - the catcher make the 3rd out, have to sprint to the dugout and get ready. Bradley's catcher pulled it off in 45 seconds off the clock. I was impressed.

-There is a major difference in the bats.

-Andrew Toles can flat out fly.

-All is all I don't think this team looked that bad. They look as good as a UT team has looked this early in the season in a long time. I'm not making reservations in Omaha, but with the way some SEC teams have struggled out of the gate, I'm a bit more optimistic a trip to Hoover might actually happen this year after all. But, there's still 49 games to be played. Long ways to go.
 
#3
#3
tigervol9802 said:
Just a few random thoughts after my first game of the season.

-Stadium renovations are very nice.

-Steckenrider made a lot of lousy two strike pitches. I'll chalk it up to an off day.

-Bullpen looked fantastic. 5 IP, 0 runs, 2 hits is a great line regardless of level or opponent.

-Thurber has an absolute cannon and came about 3 feet from the best 5 minutes a UT player has had in a while.

-Tyler Horne's at bat intro is great.

-I got to see the one thing I wanted with the 90 second clock - the catcher make the 3rd out, have to sprint to the dugout and get ready. Bradley's catcher pulled it off in 45 seconds off the clock. I was impressed.

-There is a major difference in the bats.

-Andrew Toles can flat out fly.

-All is all I don't think this team looked that bad. They look as good as a UT team has looked this early in the season in a long time. I'm not making reservations in Omaha, but with the way some SEC teams have struggled out of the gate, I'm a bit more optimistic a trip to Hoover might actually happen this year after all. But, there's still 49 games to be played. Long ways to go.
Click to expand...

Steckenrider making his second start, not sure if starting is his future. Pitches well in short spurts, but Raleigh says he doesn't bounce back the next day well enough to be a consistent reliever. I think he'll be a weekday starter and one day a weekend reliever when SEC play rolls around.

The rulebook on the pitch clock says that when a catcher finishes an inning at bat or on base, the clock does not start until that player reaches the dugout, so he does get a little bit more time in those situations.

I agree with you that they look better. People can go on and on about how bad the opposition is, but remember that we were losing games like these to opponents like these last season. Winning the games you should win is the first step to having a successful season.
 
#5
#5
Levi came in relief and continues to look very solid. That throw from right field to get the runner at 3rd by Thurber was absolutely awesome! after falling behind, the Vols quickly rallied and never looked back. We continue to be aggressive on the basepaths and are racking up a handful of steals a game. hopefully the rain will hold today and tomorrow...Go Vols!!!
 
#6
#6
So far so good. Thurber has a great arm. Steck will be fine he had an off day... I guess... He throws hard.. But has command issues... Was the same way last year.
 
#7
#7
Gruver looks good. Velocity is still down , after 2yrs you would think it would be back. But overall doing a great job. The bullpen is solid from what I have seen. The true test will come in SEC play. But it is important for this teams tender psych to beat these less talented teams. As deer park said you have to start somewhere. ( paraphrasing of course).... oh and I agree with Ari.
 
#8
#8
Gentleman Jack said:
Levi came in relief and continues to look very solid. That throw from right field to get the runner at 3rd by Thurber was absolutely awesome! after falling behind, the Vols quickly rallied and never looked back. We continue to be aggressive on the basepaths and are racking up a handful of steals a game. hopefully the rain will hold today and tomorrow...Go Vols!!!
Click to expand...

As soon as Thurber let that ball go I knew he had him. One of the best throws I've seen in a while.

One other note I forgot - lot of smallball was played by both teams. Even more that I thought there would be.
 
#9
#9
tigervol9802 said:
As soon as Thurber let that ball go I knew he had him. One of the best throws I've seen in a while.

One other note I forgot - lot of smallball was played by both teams. Even more that I thought there would be.
Click to expand...

I believe smallball will be the theme of the year. There was at least 3 hits last night that would have been homeruns last year by the Vols that stopped at the warning track.
 
#10
#10
Gentleman Jack said:
I believe smallball will be the theme of the year. There was at least 3 hits last night that would have been homeruns last year by the Vols that stopped at the warning track.
Click to expand...

Wind blowing straight in had a little to do with that as well, but yeah, it's a new ballgame. I was just shocked at how often I saw both teams bunting.
 
#12
#12
Tough loss today....hard to win when you get 9 hits, 6 walks, and only score 3 runs

The offense needs to break out tomorrow for 10+ runs against Morehead State....Morehead, which has a dreadful 1-10 record, has given up a lot of runs this year....if we can't break out tomorrow I'll be worried about our offense
 
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#13
#13
Just looked at our batting averages.....they're not that bad other than Liles' .192, Fritts' .182 and Thurber's .200....those guys need to pick it up
 
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#14
#14
TNVols58 said:
Tough loss today....hard to win when you get 9 hits, 6 walks, and only score 3 runs

The offense needs to break out tomorrow for 10+ runs against Morehead State....Morehead, which has a dreadful 1-10 record, has given up a lot of runs this year....if we can't break out tomorrow I'll be worried about our offense
Click to expand...

Wow 1-10, and I thought the UG Dawgs were the worst.
Vols need to score early, and score a lot. The ideal outcome for me is for the Vols to win 15 or more, and scoring 20 or more runs.
 
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