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Vanderbilt
baseball has begun its fall practice period, where the team gets six weeks of practices and scrimmages to evaluate its newcomers.
The fall will be especially important for the Commodores this year after bringing in a roster that's over 50% newcomers after missing the NCAA tournament in 2026. That roster includes both a top-10 freshman class and transfer class, per Baseball America.
The Tennessean has viewed several scrimmages this fall. Here are 15 notes on standouts and more:
Vanderbilt baseball: 15 notes from fall practice
- Brodie Johnston, Tommy Goodin and Ryker Waite look like the centerpieces of the offense they were expected to be. Johnston and Waite have dealt with minor injuries, but when they played, Johnston showed continued patience and power, while Waite consistently hit balls hard. Goodin has looked like the team's top home run threat after hitting 12 in 2026.
- Missouri transfer Blaize Ward has been the biggest fall standout. In Ward's freshman season with the Tigers, he hit .296 overall and .323 in SEC play, but without much power. He's shown more power in the fall with the ability to work the ball to his pull side. He even hit a home run off Connor Fennell.
- Maryland transfer Bud Coombs has been a bit banged up, but when he hits the ball he makes consistent hard, pull-side contact. Whiffs have been a bit of an issue, but Goodin and Johnston have shown in the past that whiffs don't matter nearly as much when you have impact power.
- James Tronstein looks like a dynamic freshman for the Commodores. He's shown hitting ability, power, speed and versatility, though he needs to hit the ball in the air more to tap into that power. He's played second and third base this fall and has experience playing outfield.
- Noah Wilson has also flashed. The lefty-hitting outfielder is fast and shows big power in batting practice. He just needs to keep strikeouts to a minimum.
- Sophomore Collin Brightwell has had a good fall. He looks like he's hitting the ball harder than last season, though his overall hit tool is still a question.
- Speed alone won't be enough to crack this lineup. There are so many speed and defense threats on the roster that it's the ones who can also hit who will crack the starting nine.
- The transfers have been a mixed bag. Ward and Coombs have shown flashes, and Wake Forest transfer Matt Conte looks like he will stabilize the catcher position. But Wofford transfer Niko Brini and Fairleigh Dickinson transfer Hunter Ray have struggled.
- Brini struck out less than 10% of the time in his four-year college career before transferring, so it's been a surprise to see him as one of the most whiff-prone players on the roster so far this fall.
- Aiden Stillman and Wyatt Nadeau are two of the more talented pitchers on the roster, but both were undone by control issues as freshmen. Both have kept the walks lower this fall than they did a season ago, but when both pitched this weekend, they threw under 60% strikes. It's very hard to make it as a starter in the SEC without consistently throwing at least 60% strikes, showing there's still more work to be done for both. At the very worst, they look like impact, multi-inning bullpen arms.
- Freshman Joseph Contreras is known for getting Aaron Judge to ground into a double play in the World Baseball Classic. His fall appearances have been more of the same, as he shows a heavy ball that generates a ton of grounders. He's efficient with his pitches and can erase baserunners he does allow via the double play.
- USC transfer Gavin Lauridsen has thrown a lot of strikes this fall. Though he doesn't rack up strikeouts, he fills up the zone and has been effective. He was a reliever with the Trojans but has been stretched out this fall.
- Michigan transfer Shane Brinham has had one strong outing and one where he got hit around. The lefty can throw three pitches for strikes and is comfortable mixing pitches and attacking hitters.
- In one scrimmage outing, Western Kentucky transfer lefty Dominic Monaco struck out eight batters in three innings. He's also thrown more strikes than he did with the Hilltoppers, where he walked 24 batters in 24⅔ innings. Monaco is homer-prone, though, which could affect his ability to pitch in a leverage relief role.
- Freshman RJ Cope is a two-way player listed at 6-foot-8 and 250 pounds. He has plenty of potential but is raw on both sides of the ball. On the mound, he's up to the mid-90s but the strike-throwing isn't consistent. At the plate, he has plenty of power.
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: 15 thoughts on Vanderbilt baseball during fall practice period
