MARTIN, Tenn.- A year after arguably the best season in its NCAA Division I program history, the University of Tennessee at Martin baseball team will have their eyes set on building upon that success during the upcoming 2024 season.
The Skyhawks exploded in the 2023 campaign for the first winning season in conference play during the NCAA Division I Era, which resulted in the team’s highest ever finish (third) in the Ohio Valley Conference Standings. With the season ready to begin, head coach Ryan Jenkins is looking forward to his talented group taking the field this weekend for the season-opening home series against Northern Kentucky.
“We’ve been probably about as fortunate as we’ve ever been as far as pre-spring practice,” Jenkins said. “The weather has been good and everybody is healthy. It’s been really good to have an older and mature group that you can trust to go out and get the little things done so we can be really efficient with our time.”
The 2024 UT Martin baseball team features 26 returners from last year’s squad while 14 newcomers will don the Orange and Blue for the first time to aid in the search of the program’s first OVC Championship. Of the 26 returners, 17 are seniors – an all-time high in Jenkins’ seven-year tenure.
“It’s been good to have the guys from last year back,” Jenkins said. “It’s always nice to have guys that you have a really good relationship with, guys that know how you operate, know when something needs to change. They take ownership of their team which is great, a lot of the small problems get taken care of internally which is really nice for us. They know the day-to-day, it’s an older group that’s been dedicated to what they do and a group that really wants to win.”
An expected strength of the Skyhawks in 2024 is its everyday lineup as UT Martin brings back seven of the nine starters that played in the opening round of last year’s OVC Baseball Championship.
Named to the preseason All-OVC team and a two-time all-conference honoree, redshirt junior Blaze Bell will be back at first base where he started 53 games and ranked third in the OVC in doubles (18) a year ago.
In the middle infield, 2023 OVC first-teamer Andrew Fernandez (top-five in the OVC with a .348 batting average, 21 doubles, 80 hits and 53 RBI’s) is expected to take over the second base role with Jalen Fithian (.417 batting average, .697 slugging percentage and 28 stolen bases last spring at nearby Jackson State Community College in 2023) and program veteran Alec Beaman (career .955 fielding percentage, 62 career starts) exchanging time at shortstop.
Mac Danford (Preseason All-OVC after an all-league campaign that featured a .347 batting average and team-best 10 home runs a year ago) and Jonah Wichman (12 starts in 2023) will both get playing time at the hot corner.
Behind the plate this spring will be a combination of Cameron Brady (42 career starts), Slade Taylor (team-high 27 starts at catcher in 2023), Frank Micallef (.478 slugging percentage last season at Iowa Western Community College), Houston Clark (No. 2 catcher recruit in his class in the state of Tennessee by Perfect Game) and Jackson Cooke (six starts as a true freshman last spring) will compose half of the Skyhawk battery.
The depth of the team continues to shine when looking at the outfield which will feature the likes of Hunter McLean (67 career starts, .465 on-base percentage in 2023), Zac Rice (45 starts in 2023, fourth in the OVC with 17 doubles), Will Smith (136 career starts, .300 batting average last season), Cullen Box (coming off a remarkable prep career at Portland High School), Benny DeTrude (51 career games played, .294 average last spring) and Travis Stauter (five starts as a true freshman in 2023).
Junior left-handed hitter Cole Smith (50 starts, .378 on-base percentage as a freshman at Lurleen B. Wallace Community College) is additionally projected to see significant playing time – likely at designated hitter.
The trio of Carson Deer (senior catcher in his fourth year with the Skyhawk program), Garner Anderson (redshirt freshman utility man who was the backup first baseman in 2023) and JT Morgan (junior outfielder with two years of experience at nearby Bethel University) will also battle for playing time this spring.
In terms of arms, a mix of returners and newcomers give UT Martin flexibility during the early portion of the season.
“Right now, our pitching staff has a lot more depth than we’ve had in the past,” Jenkins said. “We feel good about having an older group and a lot of guys who have had their feet in the fire. We have a lot of baseball early and everyone will get an opportunity – we have some really good competition that will shine a light on those future roles for us this season.”
Topping the starting rotation is left-hander Tristan Walton, who emerged as one of the best starters in the OVC with 73 punchouts and a 3.75 ERA in league play last season. Reigning OVC Freshman of the Year and Freshman All-American Zach Wager was impressive in 2023 as the lefty made a team-high 22 appearances and posted the lowest ERA (2.44) of any Skyhawk with at least 40 innings pitched in the program’s NCAA Division I Era (since 1993). Redshirt senior right-hander Eric Steensma (5.07 ERA with just 15 walks in 55 innings last spring) also returns after making 17 career starts in a UT Martin uniform.
Newcomer Jeb Bartle (15-3 record in 104 innings over two seasons at Snead State Community College) plus the returning duo of J. Henry Hobson (21 appearances, three saves, 46.2 innings in 2023) and Choyce Diffey (9.53 strikeouts-per-nine-innings ratio last season) will also get opportunities to start and/or throw bulk innings throughout the year.
Campbell Cleveland (three saves, 3.20 ERA in 19 relief appearances), Tucker Reed (21 appearances in 2023, 75 career innings) and Baylor Jones (37 appearances in the last two seasons, 57.1 career frames) are the three most experienced relievers on the 2024 Skyhawk roster. Senior righty Eli Martin was also called upon 14 times out of the bullpen last spring while 2023 redshirt lefties Dylan Lapic and Brock Arender round out the returning hurlers.
Incoming junior pitchers to the Skyhawk program in 2024 include Davis Gaston (4.01 ERA in 35 relief appearances at Central Alabama Community College last spring), Shawn Perez (2-0 with a 4.30 ERA at Dyersburg State Community College in 2023), Rett Edwards (team-best 58.2 innings a year ago at Calhoun Community College), Davis Benton (four scoreless outings out of five appearances at New Orleans last year) and Sam Smith (2-0 with two saves at Central Alabama Community College in 2023).
Sophomore Kaleb Baskin (4.32 ERA at Dyersburg State Community College last season) and freshman Silas Jones (coming off a successful run at Grace Christian Academy) will also make their UT Martin debuts on the hill this spring.
With the 2024 season right around the corner, anticipation fills the air with UT Martin primed to take another big step in the program’s history.
“There’s a lot of excitement,” Jenkins said. “We have some guys that have joined our team in the last year that don’t really know the ups and downs of the program and things we’ve dealt with. At the same time, we have returners that have been here for the duration of their careers and they understand what kind of an opportunity we have. I’m glad they’re being able to experience that excitement around what we’ve got.”
