JUCO transfer infielder Riley Nelson commits to Vanderbilt Commodores

The Vanderbilt Commodores landed a big-time baseball prospect from the transfer portal ranks on Saturday night. JUCO transfer infielder Riley Nelson decided to join the ‘Dores. That news was relayed by Grace Hall of The Vandy Hustler. Last season, he had a .495 slugging percentage and blasted 13 home runs in a wood-bat league.

At Yavapai College in 2024, Nelson was an all-conference selection. He hit .412 with 21 doubles, while being walked 29 times to 12 strikeouts. In the MLB Draft League this summer, Nelson hit .330, which ranked seventh in the league. He also hit eight doubles, tying for eighth in the league. Nelson was actually previously committed to University of Texas Rio Grande Valley but decommitted early in July. He’ll have to years of eligibility remaining.

The 6-foo-3, 200-pounder is a left-handed hitter, something Vandy needs more of since they lost Camden Kozeal, who decided to hit the portal and join the Arkansas Razorbacks. Nelson becomes the first JUCO player to commit to Vandy since Javier Vaz, who played for the ‘Dores in 2021 and 2022. Vaz was eventually drafted in the 15th round of the 2022 MLB Draft.

Vanderbilt finished with a 38-23 record this year, including 13-17 in the SEC. They made it to the 2024 SEC Tournament Semifinals, before losing to in-state rival, the Tennessee Volunteers. In the 2024 NCAA Tournament, they lost to Coastal Carolina and High Point, which eliminated them after their first two games.

More transfer portal additions for Vandy joining Nelson

Let’s take a look at some of the other portal additions this offseason for the Commodores. They landed Mike Mancini, an infielder from JMU. He hit .329 with 10 doubles, three triples, 15 home runs, and 29 stolen bases. Mancini also blasted four home runs in two games in the Raleigh Regional in this year’s NCAA Tournament.

Pitcher Connor Fennell is joining the Commodores. As a freshman with the Dayton Flyers, he appeared in 15 games with 12 starts, posting a 4.74 ERA with 66 strikeouts and 13 walks in 74 innings.

Outfielder Koby Kropf committed to Vandy on June 18th, coming from USC Upstate. Kropf was a second team All-Big South selection after hitting .352 with 21 doubles and 20 home runs. David Mendez, the A-10 Rookie of the Year for the Dayton Flyers, announced his commitment to Vandy on June 16th. He hit .342 with nine doubles, six home runs, and 24 stolen bases.

Other players that will be joining Nelson in the transfer portal class are pitcher Tommy O’Rourke and pitcher Cody Bowker. O’Rourke hails from Stanford and Bowker hails from Georgetown.