Can rest from an early exit at SEC Tournament help Tennessee in NCAA Regionals?

A year ago, Tennessee baseball back up its SEC regular-season championship with four wins in four days to win the SEC Tournament in Hoover. The Vols ran through Vanderbilt, LSU and Kentucky before taking down Florida in the title game. 

It only further solidified Tennessee, sitting on 53 wins at the time, as the No. 1 overall seed in the 64-team NCAA Tournament bracket. The Vols couldn’t turn the historic season into back-to-back trips to the College World Series in Omaha, though.

After going 3-0 in the Knoxville Regional, Tennessee was upset by Notre Dame in the Super Regional three-game series. 

This time around at the SEC Tournament, the seventh-seeded Vols didn’t make it out of Day 1 at Hoover Met, losing 3-0 to No. 10-seed Texas A&M in the bracket’s single-elimination first round. 

But could being one-and-done in Hoover, and avoiding playing four games in four days, help Tennessee in Regional play next week? 

Tony Vitello: ‘Some teams have benefitted’ from rest before NCAA Regionals

“Yeah, I think in prior history, some teams have benefitted from that,” Tennessee coach Tony Vitello said Tuesday after his team was bounced in the one-hit shutout from the Aggies. 

For example, Vitello explained, Drew Beam asked Tuesday if he was available to pitch on two days rest after the two-hour rain delay that stopped the game in the eighth inning. 

“Gas some guys out,” Vitello said, “maybe it costs you in a regional.” 

Or, instead of being all in on the conference tournament, Tennessee could benefit from more than a week off. The Vols now await the NCAA Tournament bracket reveal on Monday, when they’ll learn where they’re headed and who they’ll face.

Projections on Wednesday had Tennessee as a No. 2 seed, playing in Indiana State’s regional, with the Sycamores as the No. 16 overall seed in the field.

“You can get some guys fresh and get them sorted and it could benefit you,” Vitello said. “A lot of it is probably how guys’ mindsets are between now and then because you know their bodies are going to get rested.

“I think playing in this league, or playing in any league, a little bit of time off your feet or maybe not as many pitches thrown can probably benefit somebody this time of year.”

Up Next: 2023 College Baseball Tournament Selection Show, Monday, Noon ET, ESPN2

Last year, Ole Miss lost on Tuesday at the SEC Tournament as the No. 9 seed in the bracket. All the Rebels did from there was go on to win the national championship. Ole Miss went to Omaha as a 37-win team. Tennessee is currently sitting on 38.

Mississippi State went 0-2 at the SEC Tournament two years ago, as the No. 3 seed, and went on to win the College World Series.

“Hats off to those guys that are national champions from those two teams,” Vitello said, … “but it’s kind of a good segue on accident. We’ll talk about delicate balance early. In my opinion I think the league prepares you for every — there’s nothing you have not seen. No fan is going to make a comment, no amount of fans, no noise, no facility, no pitching, no hitter. You’re going to see everything in this league, so it prepares you. I think that’s one of the reasons you often see a bunch of teams from our league in Omaha.

“But the league in doing that or in preparing you also beats you up a little bit,” Vitello continued. “So to recover and kind of get some rest time between the finish of SEC play including here in Hoover and then getting back after it, I think helps people a lot.

“To me, those two teams probably had a little bit of their own thing going, but I know it’s worked for other teams, as well, and I think it’s that combination of preparation and yet rest, as well.”