IRMINGHAM, Alabama – In the 2024 preseason coaches poll, Tennessee was selected to finish second in the eastern division in baseball’s Southeastern Conference, which will no longer have divisions.
Along with infielders Christian Moore and Billy Amick, starting pitcher Drew Beam was one of the three Volunteers selected to the Preseason All-SEC squads. After Florida with five choices, UT has the second-most in the league with three.
With 88 points and 11 first-place votes, the Gators were the only team in the preseason eastern division standings to finish ahead of the Big Orange. Tennessee finished just two points ahead of in-state rival Vanderbilt, who also received a first-place vote, after scoring 75 points and receiving two first-place votes to win the eastern division.
The complete 2024 SEC Preseason Coaches Poll and Preseason All-SEC teams can be found below.
The preseason all-conference recognition was just the latest in a long list of preseason accolades for the Vols’ talented trio of Beam, Moore and Amick. Each of them have also been named to multiple preseason All-America teams leading into this season.
After winning SEC Freshman of the Year honors in 2022, Beam had another impressive campaign in 2023, leading the team with nine victories in 17 starts to go along with a 3.63 ERA and a career-best 88 strikeouts to help lead UT to its sixth Men’s College World Series appearance in program history.
Moore enters his junior season with high expectations after putting up impressive numbers over his first to years on Rocky Top. In his first year as an everyday starter in 2023, the Brooklyn, New York, native led the team with 66 runs scored, 129 total bases, 50 walks, a .444 on-base percentage and 16 stolen bases to go along with a .304 batting average, 13 doubles, 17 home runs and 50 RBIs.
Amick will play his first season with the team after spending his first two years at Clemson, where he led the Tigers with a.413 batting average, 17 doubles, a.772 slugging percentage, and a 1.236 OPS. In 2023, he was named to the first team of the SEC and second team of the ABCA All-America. Despite playing in just 42 games, the native of South Carolina also finished second on the club with 13 home runs and 63 RBIs.
Tennessee, which is ranked as high as No. 5 nationally, will begin the 2024 season on February 16 at the Shriners Children’s College Showdown in Arlington, Texas, versus No. 21 Texas Tech. The Vols will play at Globe Life Field this weekend against Oklahoma and Baylor, two Big 12 rivals.
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