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Behind 'invisible' fastball, Tennessee's Liam Doyle is off to wondrous start this season

hunterby:Hunter Shelton•03/06/25•

HunterShelton_

Syndication: The Knoxville News-Sentinel
Tennessee pitcher Liam Doyle (12) marks in the dirt at the Tennessee baseball season opener against Hofstra, in Lindsey Nelson Stadium at University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tenn., Friday, February. 14, 2025.

The essence of the modern-day college baseball pitcher can be described as a swagger-filled psychosis. A competitive desire that toes the line between savant and savage. A no-holds-barred will to win.

Whatever you want to call it, Tennessee junior left-hander Liam Doyle has it in spades.

You see it in the way he struts off the mound with an authoritative skip after an out. You see it in the way he talks to himself — and maybe the batter, too — between pitches. All it takes is one good look at his crooked hat bill to understand that Doyle isn’t out there to impress anybody. He’s out there to strictly dominate.

So far, Doyle has done just that.

Through his first three starts of the season, Doyle has allowed just six hits and one run across 14-and-two-thirds innings. Opponents are hitting just .130 as the lefty sports an 0.61 ERA. Of the 49 batters he’s faced, 34 have struck out, while just three have drawn a walk. His 69.4-percent strikeout rate is the top mark by a starter in college baseball.

No pitcher is producing better swing-and-miss stuff than the Vols’ ace, as he currently touts a whiff rate of 60 percent, which is No. 1 in the nation for any pitcher with at least 100 pitches thrown, according to Synergy stats on D1Baseball.com.

“I love his attitude on the bump. He looks like he wants to kill hitters,” renowned pitching analyst Rob Friedman, fondly known online as PitchingNinja, told On3 about Doyle.

It’s a fastball, changeup, slider/slurve mix for Doyle, but there’s a clear standout weapon when you watch him toe the rubber. For good reason, the former Coastal Carolina and Ole Miss arm has leaned on his fastball.

Sitting mid-90s but capable of toying with 100, Doyle’s heater comes with an absurd amount of carry and run. It’s a nightmare for right and left-handed hitters. While the pitch’s natural movement results in plenty of haphazard hacks up and away for righties, Doyle has also shown that he’s capable of consistently starting it at the hip, letting it glide onto the inside corner (or painting the outside corner against lefties.) There’s an absurd amount of life to the pitch.

Doyle’s fastball alone is generating a 61.4-percent whiff rate, easily the best in college baseball thus far. LSU left-hander Kade Anderson is the only other pitcher with a fastball whiff rate above 50 percent, minimum 100 pitches thrown, per Synergy.

Of Doyle’s 34 strikeouts, 27 have come via the fastball. Of those 27, 19 went down swinging while eight went down looking. At Daikin Park in Houston last Friday against Oklahoma State, the preseason favorite to win the Big 12, Doyle struck out nine, the last six of which were on a fastball, in four-and-a-third innings. The MLB park’s camera angle provides a great look at the elite pitch:

That performance followed electric outings against Hofstra and Samford, both of which were clearly overmatched lineups. He struck out 25 across those two outings, 18 of which came via the heater.

“He throws a seemingly invisible fastball and really good secondary stuff. He’s probably the most impressive college pitcher I’ve watched this season so far,” Friedman said. “His fastball whiff rate was what really jumps out at me. It’s absurd. Hitters just can’t pick it up. No matter what level the competition, it’s outstanding.”

Doyle, who was tabbed as the No. 1 prospect for the 2025 MLB Draft by The Athletic’s Keith Law earlier this week, is expected to get the ball once again this Friday for Tennessee’s final non-conference weekend series against St. Bonaventure. The Bonnies will not be favored to perform well against the junior, to say the least.

While it’s more than fair to note that Doyle’s numbers will almost certainly come back to earth once SEC play begins, it doesn’t take away from his spectacular start in orange. Touted Tennessee pitching coach Frank Anderson has clearly worked his magic helping Doyle get to the next level.

As a freshman for Coastal Carolina, Doyle put together some solid numbers, compiling a 4.15 ERA across 56-and-a-third innings in 23 appearances, seven of which were starts. He struck out 69 and held opponents to a .206 average.

He then transferred to Ole Miss last season, where he made 11 starts and 16 total appearances. The strikeout total jumped to 84 in 55 innings, but he was hit harder en route to a 5.73 ERA. This year, though, the velocity is up and walks are minimal. After having a strikeout-to-walk ratio of under 4.00 in each of his first two seasons, he currently sits at 11.38, a number that will likely decrease over time, but still remains unbelievable to this point.

There’s been a clear uptick in just about everything Doyle does on the mound. His presence has set the tone for head coach Tony Vitello’s squad as they look to keep the momentum going following their 2024 College World Series triumph.

“I do think he is a different athlete and a different pitcher than he was last year,” Vitello told reporters following Doyle’s first start of the year on Feb. 14. “Just an improved form, but you know he’s always been talented. He’s always been a competitor. He’s always got a lot of personality he brings to the table, so it’s just fun being on his side and seeing that progression in those areas he’s already good at.”

Tennessee remains one of the few undefeated teams left in the nation, sitting at 13-0. The Vols, who were ranked No. 2 in the latest D1Baseball Top 25, will open SEC play at Lindsey Nelson Stadium in Knoxville next weekend against top-10 Florida.

Doyle’s numbers will be put to the test in conference play, but so far he looks like one of, if not the top arm in college baseball right now.