It’s been a while since Vanderbilt baseball was the premier program in the sport.
Under head coach Tim Corbin, they have a staggering 67% winning percentage with over 900 victories during his tenure that began in 2003 which includes two national championships, four SEC regular season titles and three SEC Tournament trophies.
But, since their last College World Series championship in 2019, the Commodores have struggled to produce the same results they once had.
Vanderbilt was runner-ups in 2021, but have failed to advance past the NCAA regional round the last three years. After winning 50-plus games six times previously under Corbin, they haven’t accomplished that since their last title in 2019.
The Commodores are trying to alter that with some coaching changes that were made, but until that happens on the field, there are people out there doubting what they can accomplish this year.
That was evident by the preseason power rankings from “D1 Baseball.”
Preseason @D1Baseball Rankings ⚾️ #NCAABaseball pic.twitter.com/arESuicWI1
— NCAA Baseball (@NCAABaseball) January 13, 2025
As seen in the graphic, Vanderbilt comes in at No. 16 on their list.
That’s behind six other SEC programs, something hard to fathom considering the domination they had over the conference during their heyday.
Despite the notion that they have taken a step back under Corbin in recent years, the Commodores have finished second, fourth, second and tied for fourth in SEC play during the four seasons since their last national championship in 2019 (COVID year excluded).
While those are solid results, it’s not something this program should accept.
Corbin made some aggressive changes to the staff that hopefully gets Vanderbilt back to what they used to be, but when it comes to what they can accomplish this year, it seems like they’ll have to prove a lot of the doubters wrong if they’re going to get back into championship contention.
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