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Cannon Peebles & Liam Doyle becoming dominant pairing for Vols

On3 imageby:Eric Cain•04/18/25•

_Cainer

Liam Doyle. Credit: UT Athletics
Liam Doyle. Credit: UT Athletics

The battery was the story for Tennessee in the 8-2 victory over Kentucky on Friday night. Liam Doyle shoved on the mound and Cannon Peebles hammered the baseball at the plate.  

Sure, the term ‘battery’ suggests the pairing’s relationship as pitcher and catcher. That’s been solid all season long, but now Peebles has turned a corner at the plate.  

“It’s fun. He is a great leader and great competitor and always just wants to win,” Doyle said of Peebles following the win. “The bat is heating up now in the perfect time and he is playing great defense behind the plate. He’s fun to be around and wish the best for him.”

Heading into his three-hit day on Sunday in Oxford, the Tennessee catcher was 0-for-8 with four strikeouts. He launched a massive two-run homer that ignited a five-run frame for the Vols in the series-finale and came through with another go-ahead two-run shot in South Carolina earlier in conference play. The clutch homers continued on Friday in the opener with Kentucky.   

With two men on base in the bottom of the sixth inning, the catcher strolled to the plate and took a 1-1 pitch over the left field wall. The drive sailed 336 feet with 99 mph exit velocity in what was his sixth long ball of the season. The bomb was his second knock of the day and handed Tennessee a 7-2 lead. Later in the eighth, Peebles left the yard once again to cap his three-hit day, the second in as many games.

“He is always the same guy defensively for me. Always just trying to do the best for our pitchers,” Doyle continued on his catcher. “I mean, it’s tough controlling pitchers out there for a game and hitting against us SEC pitchers, I’m sure. So, just for him to be able to get the bat going in the past couple games and hit two pumps [home runs] tonight, that’s pretty cool.”

The bat has been scorching hot of late for Peebles, but he’s been on the receiving end of an All-American type season for Doyle on the mound all season long. On Friday, the southpaw was his normal dominant self, going seven innings strong allowing just two runs with nine strikeouts.

“He was good. He responded to that homer really well. We’ve been working on with him just staying centered mentally. Like he can get super amped up,” Peebles said of his battery mate. “So just staying in that mental state of and not wasting any energy so he can prolong how long he’s out there.”

Over his last three starts dating back to the Texas A&M and Ole Miss series, Tennessee’s ace has combined for 21.1 innings of four runs off seven hits with 31 strikeouts and five walks. Doyle is an emotional guy who always wears his heart on his sleeve, but Peebles has made it intentional to try and keep those emotions in check for the most part.

As a result, Doyle has worked well into games and been efficient with his pitches over the stretch.

“Being centered mentally,” Peebles said. “He’s really good when he’s calm in the mind but amped up in the body. So, that’s probably been the biggest thing.”

Tennessee ran away from the Wildcats in the series-opener on Friday and the story by the end of the night was dynamic duo of Peebles and Doyle. The Vols have won several games with this combination on Friday night this year.  

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