Tennessee baseball has produced three of the top prospects in baseball under coach Tony Vitello.
Three former Vols were included in the latest update of the top 100 MLB prospects, including Chase Dollander after he was taken in the first round of the 2023 MLB Draft. Drew Gilbert is the highest-ranked Vols product as the No. 57 prospect. Dollander is second at No. 64 and Jordan Beck is No. 89.
Gilbert is the No. 2 prospect in the New York Mets organization. He was traded from the Houston Astros to the Mets in a trade for pitcher Justin Verlander. Gilbert was Houston’s first-round pick in 2022.
Dollander and Beck are in the Colorado Rockies organization. Dollander was picked No. 9 overall in the 2023 draft. Beck was drafted No. 38 overall by the Colorado Rockies in the competitive balance round A of the 2022 MLB Draft. Dollander is Colorado’s No. 3 prospect, while Beck is No. 4.
Beck and Gilbert gave UT two first-round picks in the same draft for the first time since 2007.
Gilbert hit .314 with 22 homers and 140 RBIs in three seasons. He was a catalyst on UT’s 2021 College World Series team and its 57-win team in 2022.
Dollander had 238 strikeouts in 168 innings in two seasons at Tennessee and had a 3.64 ERA. The Evans, Georgia, native went 10-0 with a 2.39 ERA in 2022 and was named the SEC pitcher of the year. He was 7-6 with a 4.75 ERA as a junior, but settled in late in the season after a rocky start in the first couple months.
Beck hit .284 with 34 homers and 134 RBIs in three seasons.
UT product Ben Joyce was the fastest pitcher to reach the Major Leagues from the 2022 draft class. He is 1-0 with a 4.50 ERA with the Los Angeles Angels. He is the Angels’ No. 8 prospect after the team took him in the third round of the 2022 MLB Draft. Joyce threw 105.5 mph at Tennessee, believed to be the fastest pitch in college baseball history.
Tennessee has had 25 players taken in the past three drafts, including a program-record 10 in the 2022 draft. UT had eight players selected in 2023, including a program-record six pitchers. The Vols had seven players taken in the 2021 draft.
Mike Wilson covers University of Tennessee athletics. Email him at michael.wilson@knoxnews.com and follow him on Twitter @ByMikeWilson. If you enjoy Mike’s coverage, consider a digital subscription that will allow you access to all of it
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