Blake Grimmer swung Tennessee baseball into the NCAA record book Tuesday.
The Vols redshirt freshman blasted Tennessee’s third grand slam of the game to tie the NCAA record and set a program record when he hit a pinch-hit, walk-off grand slam in the eighth inning against Radford.
Reese Chapman hit his second grand slam of the season in the second inning of No. 1 Tennessee’s 22-9 win at Lindsey Nelson Stadium. Andrew Fischer smoked Tennessee’s second in the eighth inning over the right-field scoreboard then Grimmer followed eight batters later with the second grand slam of the inning. The two grand slams in an inning also tied the NCAA record and set a Tennessee program record.
“There is no one strategy at the plate — get a walk, get a homer,” Vols coach Tony Vitello said. “It is just guys grinding out at-bats for each other.”
The Vols (12-0) have seven grand slams through 12 games. The NCAA record for grand slams in a season is 14, which was set by Arizona State in 2003.
Grimmer grand slam gave the Vols the run-rule victory in eight innings before they face Xavier on Wednesday (6 p.m. ET, SEC Network+).
“It is impossible to not be happy for Grimmer,” Vitello said. “He is a kid who has had some injuries and some other adversity and he works hard enough. He deserves more reps. That is the lasting impression.”
Tennessee baseball has hit seven grand slams this season
Hunter Ensley hit the first grand slam of the season for Tennessee on Feb. 15 against Hofstra. Reese Chapman hit the second a day later in the series finale against Hofstra.
Dalton Bargo slugged Tennessee’s third grand slam as part of his two-homer inning against UNC Asheville on Feb. 18. Levi Clark hit the fourth against Samford on Feb. 22. Like Grimmer, Clark also was pinch hitting when he hit the grand slam.
The Vols jumped to seven on the season with the trio against Radford.
The Vols hit 12 grand slams in 73 games last season, which is tied for the second-most in a season in NCAA history.
What is the NCAA record for grand slams in college baseball?
Arizona State holds the record for single-season grand slams with 14 in 2003. The Sun Devils played 68 games to set the record.
Oklahoma State hit 12 grand slams in 66 games in 1996. The Vols reached that mark last season when Billy Amick hit UT’s 12th against Indiana in the Knoxville Super Regional on June 1.
Tennessee set the SEC record when Blake Burke accounted for UT’s 11th when he hit a grand slam on May 17 against South Carolina. LSU held the previous record of 10, which it achieved in 1998. Blake Burke accounted for UT’s 11th when he hit a grand slam on May 17 against South Carolina.
Mike Wilson covers University of Tennessee athletics. Email him at michael.wilson@knoxnews.com and follow him on X @ByMikeWilson or Bluesky @bymikewilson.bsky.social. If you enjoy Mike’s coverage, consider a digital subscription that will allow you access to all of it.
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