VANDERBILT COMMODORES GAME NOTES Vanderbilt Athletic Communications H 2601 Jess Neely Dr. Nashville, TN 37212 Baseball Contact: Kyle Parkinson H Phone: 615.343.0020 H Email: [email protected] vucommodores.com H twitter: @vandybaseball #2 Vanderbilt Commodores (8-0) at Stanford Cardinal (6-3) COMMODORES AT-A-GLANCE H Game #9 Road #1 Thursday, March 3 5 p.m. CT Saturday, March 5 H 3 p.m. CT [Pac-12 Network] Streak .................................. W8 Sunday, March 6 H 3 p.m. CT [Pac-12 Network] Home ....................................8-0 Tuesday, March 8 H Radford H 4 p.m. [SEC Network+] Road .....................................0-0 Wednesday, March 9 H Radford H 4 p.m. [SEC Network+] Neutral .................................0-0 Day .......................................8-0 VANDERBILT RE-VU Night.....................................0-0 Vanderbilt finished off the sweep of UIC with a 20-8 win on Sunday. The team pounded out 20 hits with 15 play- vs. RH starters ......................5-0 ers contributing at least one hit. The Commodores clinched the team’s second straight series, surviving UIC in vs. LH starters ......................3-0 14 winnings to win 6-5. Bryan Reynolds picked up three hits, including his second homer, in the win. Vanderbilt posted the team’s first shutout of the season with a 9-0 win over UIC on Friday night. Jordan Sheffield tossed Extra-Innings ........................0-0 a career-best seven scoreless innings to go along with his career-high 11 strikeouts. The Commodores toppled Doubleheaders .....................0-0 Eastern Illinois 9-1 on Wednesday. Patrick Raby carried a no hitter into the seventh inning before allowing an Shutouts ...............................1-0 infield single with one out, striking out 11 in his first career start and win. Vanderbilt won a rain-shortened, five One-Run Games ...................1-0 inning game against UT Martin Tuesday 11-6. Chandler Day picked up the win in his collegiate debut with four Three+ Run Games ...............7-0 innings of work and six strikeouts. Series W-L-T .................... 2-0-0 Series Sweeps .....................2-0 ON THE BUMP On Artificial Turf...................8-0 Thursday, March 3 On Natural Grass .................0-0 RHP Jordan Sheffield (2-0, 0-75) vs. RHP Tristan Beck (1-1, 2.89) Scoring First .........................6-0 Saturday, March 5 Opp. Scores First ..................2-0 TBA vs. TBA Scoring 3+ runs ....................8-0 Opp. Scores 3+ runs .............5-0 Sunday, March 6 Hitting at least 1 HR ............6-0 TBA vs. TBA Hitting no HR ........................2-0 Making at least 1 error ........4-0 COUNTER PUNCH Making no errors ..................4-0 The Commodores have packed an incredible counter punch through the team’s first eight games of the season. Leading after 6 inn ...............7-0 Excluding the ninth inning, Vanderbilt has countered with at least one run in the bottom half of the inning when Trailing after 6 inn ...............0-0 allowing a run in the top half of the frame in eight of the 11 innings. Opponents have edged the Vandy Boys 29-27 in innings in which the opponent has scored while VU has outscored opponents in all other innings 66-0 Tied after 6 inn ....................1-0 to own a run differential of plus-62. The Commodores have answered all big innings (three-plus runs) with big Leading after 7 inn ...............7-0 innings of their own trailing by a single run 20-19 overall. Trailing after 7 inn ...............0-0 Tied after 7 inn ....................1-0 OFFENSE ROLLING EARLY AND OFTEN Leading after 8 inn ...............7-0 The Vanderbilt offense has been impressive in the team’s first eight games despite losing three starters in the Trailing after 8 inn ...............0-0 lineup that accounted for 273 hits last season. The Dores have scored a nation-leading 93 runs while averag- Tied after 8 inn ....................1-0 ing 11.6 runs per game for the eighth most runs per game in the nation. The Commodores have scored 10-plus vs. Top 5 Teams ...................0-0 runs four times already this season, a number last year’s team did not reach until the 11th game of the season. vs. Top 10 Teams .................0-0 The offense has been especially dangerous early in games scoring 58 runs in the first four innings of games, including 21 in the third inning alone. More than half of the team’s runs (62.4%) have come in the first half of vs. Top 25 Teams .................0-0 games. VU has scored first in six of eight contests, including four games that saw a Vandy run cross the plate In the State of Tenn .............8-0 in the opening frame. The offense’s 101 hits rank fourth in the nation with the team’s on-base percentage (.461) vs. Out-of-State Opp ............7-0 checking in at sixth-best in America. On Weekdays .......................2-0 On Weekends .......................6-0 YOU GET A HIT... AND YOU GET A HIT... EVERYONE GETS A HIT! COMMODORES BROADCAST All 18 position players on the Vanderbilt roster now have at least one hit this season. An incredible 15 different Dores posted hits in Sunday’s win over UIC. Bryan Reynolds led the way last week with 11 hits followed by Ro Eric Jones calls the action on Coleman’s eight and Jeren Kendall’s seven. Reynolds posted three straight, three-hit games and also drove in a WNSR 560 AM / 95.9 FM team-high nine runs. In the team’s first eight games, 11 Commodores have already recorded multi-hit games led beginning 15-minutes prior to by Kendall, who has five. first pitch. @VandyBaseball #VandyBoys vucommodores.com 1 COMMODORE NOTES THE ALL AMERICANS Six Commodores earned preseason All-American status led by junior Bryan Reynolds, who was on every major preseason All-American list. Pitchers Ben Bowden, Jordan Sheffield and Kyle Wright all saw their names appear on various All-American teams. Sophomores Jeren Kendall and Will Toffey both received preseason accolades after earning Freshman All-American status last season. REYNOLDS, TOFFEY NAMED PRESEASON ALL-SEC Junior Bryan Reynolds and sophomore Will Toffey were named preseason All-SEC by the league’s coaches. Both Commodores were tabbed as second team members. COMMODORES DEBUTING NEW NIKE UNIFORMS Vanderbilt is one of only three teams in the nation to be wearing Nike’s new Vapor Elite uniform. The Commodores are joined by Oregon and North Carolina in the new uniforms. Three new elements are highlighted in the uniforms: the Vapor Elite Pants are 20% lighter than the sport’s traditional knit 2014 National CHAMPIONS pants, the Vapor Elite Jersey, made from stretch woven fabric, offers maximum mobility with minimal weight and the True Vapor Fitted hat features an exclusive bill construction designed to reduce weight, improve moisture management and relieve pressure against the forehead. 54 H 51 H 51 NUMBER NINE Only program in the nation Sophomore Will Toffey has changed his uniform to No. 9 after earning Freshman All-American honors with three straight while wearing No. 10 last season. The No. 9 was Toffey’s uniform number throughout his prep career 50-win seasons and when it came available the Barnstable, Mass. native asked Coach Corbin to make the move into a new jersey. FRESHMAN CLASS TABBED NO. 1 For the record fourth time, Vanderbilt’s recruiting class has been ranked No. 1 by Baseball America. The Commodores’ 13-man class is comprised of seven pitchers and six position players from nine different states. Vanderbilt’s fourth top class in the Baseball America poll (2005, 2011, 2012, 2015) stretches the Dores’ record with only Florida and Arizona State claiming multiple top classes with two each. Vandy is also riding an unprecedented 11-year streak of Top 25 classes. The 2015 class is the latest top class for Corbin and recruiting coordinator Travis Jewett after hauling in the second of back- to-back classes in 2012. IN THE TIM CORBIN ERA 12 MLB first round picks since 2004 are the most in the nation National Award Watch Lists Commodore Weekly Winners Player (Pos.) Award Player (Pos.) Honor Date Ben Bowden (P) NCWBA Stopper of the Year Jeren Kendall (OF) SEC Player of Week 2/22 Bryan Reynolds (OF) Golden Spikes Award Jeren Kendall (OF) Natl Player of Week 2/22 $46M Kyle Wright (P) Golden Spikes Award Jeren Kendall (OF) Natl Hitter of Week 2/22 Since 2004, Vanderbilt players have received signing bonuses totalling over $46 million. 2 @VandyBaseball #VandyBoys vucommodores.com COMMODORE NOTES DORES TABBED TO FINISH SECOND IN SEC EAST BY COACHES Commodores In The Pros The Commodores were picked to finish second in the SEC East by the league coaches while receiv- Player (Years at VU) Team ing one vote to win the East division and the league. Top-ranked Florida received 13 votes to win the division and the league making them a unanimous choice (coaches cannot vote for their own team). The rest of the East was picked with South Carolina third, Kentucky fourth, Missouri fifth, Georgia Pedro Alvarez (06-08) sixth and Tennessee seventh. In the West Texas A&M was picked to take the title followed by LSU, Arkansas, Mississippi State, Ole Miss, Auburn and Alabama. Mike Baxter (04-05) Seattle Tyler Beede (12-14) San Francisco SWITCH IT UP Vanderbilt’s roster features four switch hitters with juniors Ro Coleman and Bryan Reynolds, sopho- Walker Buehler (13-15) Los Angeles (NL) more Tristan Chari and speed freshman Alonzo Jones. Coleman and Reynolds have combined for 282 Matt Buschmann (03-06) hits in their careers with Reynolds posting a pair of 90-hit seasons in his first two years on West End.