Vanderbilt baseball as NCAA darkhorse? Tim Corbin is telling you there's a chance | Estes

As Vanderbilt baseball losses go, Tim Corbin was downright chipper after this latest one.

In the postgame disappointment of Saturday’s 6-4 loss to Tennessee in the SEC Tournament semifinals, the Commodores coach looked “at it from a positive.” He complimented his five pitchers – four of them freshmen – for holding the top-ranked Vols to six runs. He talked of a “low point” the previous weekend and how his Commodores lifted that cloud by playing better and winning four in a row, including three games in Hoover, Alabama.

Most importantly, Corbin spoke about those NCAA Regionals as if a certainty for Vanderbilt, no longer the question they’d been.

Hadn’t been many good weeks lately for Vanderbilt. This, however, was a good week.

"Personally, and these kids should feel this way too,” Corbin told reporters. “I'm leaving this tournament very confident about our group right now.”

Typically, Corbin tolerates media appearances after defeats more than engaging openly, so it’s worth listening to what he wanted to get across. In this instance, I’d say it was a pat on the back to a team that needed it. He wanted everyone – and his own players, too – to know he’s starting to like the look of these Commodores.

Vanderbilt (38-21) can expect to hear its name called during Monday’s NCAA selection show. It won’t be hosting a regional. It’ll be sent somewhere, likely as a No. 2 seed, but it’ll be in the field.

That’ll be 18 years in a row that’s the case, the longest streak in NCAA Division I baseball.

And until recently, there was real concern about that streak ending in 2024.

On May 17, Kentucky stomped Vanderbilt 17-7, winning the second-to-last game of the regular season via the seven-inning run rule. The Wildcats had scored in each inning. In Hoover, Corbin reflected on that night and gathering his team together on the field in Lexington, fireworks going off while “Kentucky was celebrating like it was the damn presidential inauguration.”

Corbin thought to himself, “Whoa, this is a low point.”

“And it was,” he said.

With only 12 SEC wins on their record, Vanderbilt essentially faced a must-win in the series finale in Lexington. The Commodores went on to win 12-4. Then they came to the SEC Tournament and beat Florida (6-3) in an elimination game, followed by Tennessee (13-4) and Mississippi State (4-3).

Some good, timely signs in Hoover. Vanderbilt’s bats woke up a bit. Braden Holcomb went 7-of-13 at the plate. Calvin Hewett was 6-of-14. RJ Austin totaled six hits, too.

Best of all, none of the four SEC Tournament contests went terribly for a talented, but unreliable, Vanderbilt pitching staff that has been prone to getting shelled away from home. Staff ERA for the week was a sporty 3.75.

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"Since that point (in Lexington),” Corbin said. “I think there's been some pretty good energy amongst the group. They are a good bunch of guys to coach. I really enjoy it, and I hope it lasts a while.”

Entering an NCAA Tournament, Corbin is telling us there’s a chance.

To believe that is to value trajectory, the idea of an underachieving club figuring it out at the right time, over all the … you know … reasons they’ve been underachieving. This has not been typically powerhouse Vanderbilt team, and this SEC season was a rough ride.

Nonetheless, if I’m a No. 1 NCAA seed looking at my regional bracket and I see Vanderbilt in there, I wouldn’t be happy about it.

Certainly not as happy as Corbin appeared to be Saturday night, his team leaving Hoover in much better shape than when it arrived.

Reach Tennessean sports columnist Gentry Estes at gestes@tennessean.com and on the X platform (formerly known as Twitter) @Gentry_Estes.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: After SEC Tournament, Tim Corbin 'confident' about Vanderbilt baseball