Breaking Down Tennessee Baseball’s Opening Week Starters
Tennessee Baseball head coach Josh Elander announced the Vols’ opening weekend starting pitcher rotation to start the year. Elander will go with sophomore Tegan Kuhns on Friday, Landon Mack on Saturday, and Virginia transfer Evan Blanco on Sunday. With the rotation for the Vols’ first series now set, let's break down who each of the starting pitchers is and what Vols fans can expect from them.
Friday - RP Tegan Kuhns
Kuhns, 20, is a true sophomore, standing at 6’3, 190, and throwing from the right side. The Pennsylvanian being named the Friday starter was to be expected after showing flashes in his freshman season last year and posting some very impressive numbers in the Cape Cod League last Fall. He throws a fastball (94-96 mph) and an upper-70s curveball as his two primary pitches, an upper-80s cutter, a mid-80s changup, and a lower-80s slider.
In the 2025 season under now San Francisco Giants manager Tony Vitello, Tuhns was deployed both as a reliever and as a starter, pitching in 15 total games and starting 10, most of which came early in the season. The numbers weren’t spectacular, posting a 5.40 ERA, a 1.61 WHIP, and a 2.5 strikeouts to walk ratio in 36.2 innings, making him take a back seat down the stretch. His main issue was controlling his secondary pitches, struggling to find the zone consistently with options other than the heater.
However, Kuhns showed a huge jump in production while playing for the Brewster Whitecaps in the Cape Cod League last August. He started 3 games with a 1.35 ERA, one walk, and just two earned runs in 13.1 innings.
“He has just made a jump,” Elander said. “He’s made some changes on the pitching side. It gives him a little more windows where he can attack both righties and lefties. It’s as good as it gets right there with Tegan.”
Entering 2026, Kuhns is a Top 50 MLB prospect and a preseason All-American according to Baseball America ahead of his second season with the Vols. The hype for him is there, and he could take the reins as the Vols’ premier arm. While it won’t be dominated by velocity like Liam Doyle had last year, his pitch mix and development should have Elander and Vols fans very excited for his upcoming campaign.
Saturday - RP Landon Mack
Mack, 19, is a righty transfer from Rutgers, where he led the Scarlett Knights in wins with a 6-5 record on an average Rutgers team. He was honored last season as a Big 10 All-Freshman team member and a Freshman All-American according to Baseball America. He is also another five-pitch thrower, sporting a fastball (94-97 mph), sinker, changeup, curveball, and cutter, which is his primary strikeout pitch.
His numbers last season were very solid for the Scarlett Knights. In 15 starts, Mack put up a 4.03 ERA, a 1.220 WHIP, and a stellar 4.12 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 81.1 innings. He struck out 20% of the batters he faced and only walker 4.1% of them. Along with great punch-out pitching, he has the ability to go deep into ballgames. He pitched six games of 6.0 innings or more, maxing out at 8.0 innings against Minnesota last April.
If this sounds familiar to Vols fans, Elander has the same idea, comparing Mack to a former VFL who showed out in orange and white.
“There is some Chase Dollander in there,” Elander said. “Even some similarities in the delivery, but the complete factor is about as good as it gets, and the stuff is just gross to be honest. He gives you stability in the middle of the rotation.”
Mack spent last summer with the USA Collegiate National Team in the Stars vs Stripes series, where he competed against some of the nation's top college players in a five-game series. He’s the type of pitcher who could give plenty of length on Saturdays to help save the bullpen for Sunday and still give the Vols a great chance to win in the middle of a series.
Sunday - LP Evan Blanco
Blanco, 22, brings loads of experience from the left side after spending three seasons at Virginia before transferring this offseason. He uses a traditional three-pitch mix featuring a low 90s fastball, low 80s slider, and low 80s changeup, which he uses as his primary pitch.
While he has by far the most experience of any starter on the team, he’s coming off his worst college season. In 2025, Blanco had a 6.23 ERA in eight starts and 16 total appearances after being selected as a preseason All-American before the campaign. However, that season at Virginia was full of uncertainty after their longtime head coach Brian O’Connor abruptly left to coach at Mississippi State, leaving the team in shambles for the year.
However, Blanco has had plenty of success outside of last season. In 2024, he went 8-3 with a 3.62 ERA in 18 starts, which earned him a spot on the 2024 All-ACC third team. Last summer, like Kuhns, he played in the Cape Cod League for the Hyannis Harbor Hawks, where he made three starts and posted a 1.50 ERA over 12 innings.
“You know what you’re going to get,” Elander said. “It’s a very comforting feeling as a coach. He had, arguably, numbers-wise, the best fall of any pitcher we had on the staff.”
Fans won’t ignore what happened in 2025 if he starts slow, but he is set to bring reliability on Sundays if he can find his 2024 form once again.