Tennessee baseball coach Josh Elander admits pitching staff was painful experience
Tennessee baseball coach Josh Elander could hardly watch the Vols pitchers in their 12-8 loss in Game 1 of the home series against Alabama.
An exasperated Josh Elander walked into the the postgame press conference following Tennessee baseball's 12-8 loss to No. 15 Alabama on April 24. The brim of the first-year UT coach's orange baseball cap casted a shadow over his eyes as the Vols (27-15, 8-11 SEC) dropped the fifth of their last six series openers in the loss to the Tide (29-14, 10-9).
In their last SEC series against Ole Miss, the pitching mostly held up while the offense floundered. In Game 1 against Alabama at Lindsey Nelson Stadium, it was the offense that kept Tennessee in shouting distance while seven different pitchers combined to allow 10 walks, 10 hits, two balks, and hit six batters. "It was really frustrating to watch," Elander said.
"It was painful just to sit there ... We talk about it to our guys all the time, we want to compete over the plate. I'd rather see a guy hit four home runs in a row than watch what we did.
I don't know if it's a lack of conviction, but there's no excuse. It was really poor all the way around on the mound. " Tennessee pitchers struck out five.