Vanderbilt baseball held its first exhibition of the fall Oct. 18 at Hawkins Field, giving observers a peek at the new-look roster after missing the NCAA Tournament in 2026.
The Commodores played two nine-inning games against Walters State Community College
, winning the first 19-1, and the second 14-3. Newcomers featured heavily after Vanderbilt brought in top-10 freshman and transfer classes for the 2027 season."We're going to be a really good offense," Blaize Ward said. "I feel like there's no easy outs in our lineup. Got speed, power, contact, everything you need in the lineup. So I'm really excited to keep playing with this lineup going forward."
Here are our main takeaways:
Newcomers shine in the lineup
Vanderbilt played without Brodie Johnston, who has been dealing with a thumb
injury, and Ryker Waite exited early, but even with two key returners limited, it was the freshmen and transfers who stole the show.
Kaleb Traylor, a freshman corner infielder, hit two home runs and totaled seven hits, a walk, a hit by pitch and a sacrifice fly. Fellow freshman James Tronstein had a home run, a triple and three walks while playing left field after primarily being an infielder in the fall.
Two transfers had standout days as well. Bud Coombs, from Maryland, went 3-for-6 with a double and a home run, and Ward, from Missouri, went 2-for-4 with two doubles and a hit by pitch.
"Just being more out in front, trusting hitting the ball to the pullside," Ward said. "I was more of trying to hit the ball backside, slappy hitter last year, and being with (hitting coach Jason Esposito), he's instilled a lot of confidence in me as well to be able to go attack the ball."
The Commodores showed off their power in the first game, hitting seven doubles and four home runs, and showed more speed and small ball in the second game. Collin Brightwell exemplified that. Across both games, he was 5-for-6 with two doubles, two walks and five stolen bases. He could be in the mix at any outfield spot in the spring.
Coombs, who gave up football at Maryland to transfer to Vanderbilt as a baseball player, is still adjusting to the higher level of pitching and has some swing-and-miss, but the power figures to slot right into the middle of the lineup.
"Playing football, I got a good chance (now) to work on it all," Coombs said.
Pitchers throw strikes
Strike-throwing was a massive issue for Vanderbilt's pitching staff in 2026, but in the exhibition, that wasn't a problem.
In the first game, six pitchers combined to give up one run, walk one batter and strike out 19. Connor Fennell was excellent, as were transfers Gavin Lauridsen and Dominic Monaco and sophomores Aiden Stillman and Nate Schlote.
Lauridsen, a transfer from Southern Cal, said that he has added a cutter to his arsenal and is working on a slider after mostly throwing a fastball, curveball and changeup last season. He has thrown a high rate of strikes throughout the fall. Lauridsen is roommates with Fennell and has taken command tips from him.
"Mentally it's been the biggest change I've seen this year," Lauridsen said. "I had a great time at USC. Then being here has been like, they really understand the mental game, and just mentally, challenging you but also walking through things of how to attack hitters, how to get into the right headspace."
In the second game, Shane Brinham struck out four in two innings and Wyatt Nadeau struck out all six batters he faced. Freshman Joseph Contreras threw two scoreless innings, striking out two and generating four groundouts. Nate Taylor and Keller Bradley combined for all four walks in the second game, with two apiece.
Nadeau said he has added a sinker to his arsenal this season and is also working on throwing more strikes.
"We did really well today," Nadeau said. "I was very happy with everybody. Everybody focused on their plan and just got their job done."
Aria Gerson covers Vanderbilt athletics for The Tennessean. Contact her at agerson@gannett.com or on X @aria_gerson.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Who stood out for Vanderbilt baseball in exhibition vs Walters State
