Jan. 28, 2017

2017 Schedule

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- Baseball Time in Tennessee is just 20 days away! To count down to the start of the 2017 season, UTSports.com will profile a player each day on the Vols' 2017 squad. The countdown began on Jan. 18 and will run up until UT’s season opener on February 17 against Memphis at FedEx Park.

TENNESSEE BASEBALL'S NO. 20

1998-2000 | Jeremy Brown
1997 | Ron Cincera
1967, 1969 |Gary Cooper
2008-09 | Kentrail Davis
1993-94 | Chris Freeman
1970 | Phil Garner (Home)
1991-92 | Doug Hecker
2001-04 | Jeremy Kemp
1996 | Mike Lincoln
1989 | Mark Lundin
1980 | Pat Murphy
1974-75 | Bill Oden (Home)
1988 | Lee Payne
1976-79 | Steve Pinkham
1970-71 | Dave Rutherford (Away)
1990 | Kevin Scruggs
2016 | Aaron Soto
1965-66 | Mac Stalcup
2010-12 | Drew Steckenrider
2013-15 | Christin Stewart

Need to Know

In February, Tennessee will travel to Memphis to open their 2017 season with a three-game set (Feb. 17-19) against the University of Memphis at FedEx Park, home of the Tigers. The Big Orange then heads west during their second week of the season for a single-game matchup at Loyola Marymount in Los Angeles, Calif. (Feb. 22) before travelling to San Diego to participate in the Tony Gwynn Classic on Feb. 24-26.

Following the four-game stint in California, the Volunteers will return to Knoxville for their first home series of the season on March 3-5. The series also signifies the first-ever meeting between Norfolk State and UT.

The Orange & White open their 2017 Southeastern Conference schedule with the South Carolina Gamecocks in Knoxville on March 17-19, marking the second consecutive year for UT to begin conference play at home. Tennessee later plays host to SEC rivals Georgia (March 31-April 2), Auburn (April 13-15) and Arkansas (May 4-6) before closing out regular season play against Missouri (May 18-20) at Lindsey Nelson Stadium.

This year, the Volunteers' SEC road schedule includes trips to Mississippi State (March 24-26), Florida (April 7-9), Texas A&M (April 21-23), Vanderbilt (April 28-30) and Kentucky (May 12-14).

On the season, the Volunteers, led by Head Coach Dave Serrano and his staff, are scheduled to play 15 of their 55 regular season games against five 2016 NCAA postseason participants, including 2016 SEC Tournament Champion Texas A&M.

Countdown to Baseball: 20 Days

Seven players on this year’s Volunteer roster hail from East Tennessee, including the Knoxville native donning No. 41, redshirt junior pitcher Eric Freeman.

During his redshirt sophomore season, Freeman played in 22 games, picking up a 3.00 ERA with 41 strikeouts on 54.1 innings to gain a 3-1 record. He had a record outing against Eastern Kentucky on April 26, 2016 tying a career-high four strikeouts with another career high of 5.1 innings pitched.

Paired up behind the plate is the redshirt freshman catcher, Nico Mascia (No. 35), who also hails from Knoxville. He received All-State honors as a junior catcher at Farragut High School, knocking in 17 doubles with nine home runs and 63 RBI for a .392 batting average.