Expected fireworks happened in Diamond Hogs’ Super Regional win over Vols

FAYETTEVILLE – “The guy was fired up, man. The way he threw, you could argue that he could have done a cartwheel if you wanted to and there’s nothing wrong with it. I got no beef with that.” 

That was Tennessee head coach Tony Vitello’s response to Arkansas pitcher Zach Root being given a warning after yelling at Andrew Fisher grounded into an inning ending double play.

Both sides were issued warnings after that to keep the game under control. Both coaches touched on that after Arkansas’ 4-3 win in the opening game of the Super Regional.. 

Zach Root is your typical fiery competitor that Head Hog Dave van Horn and Vols manager Tony Vitello love to have on their staff.
Vitello and Van Horn were complementary of his passion and performance, but it was a tale of two takes post game. 

Vitello said that he (Root) is the type of guy that he loves to see inside the chalk on the bump and was asked if it was warranted to have Root removed from the game. 

“Not really,” Vitello said. “Maybe I wanted to go back in time, you know? kind of like Clemson would like (when Cam Cannerella was ejected in 2023), you know? So that would be about it.

“But I think, because I’ve misbehaved before), there was a warning, and then retroactively, there was a warning for Root being fired up to get a guy that’s — I mean, I don’t know what the tickets cost, but I’m pretty sure everyone here would pay good money to see Root versus Fisher again.” 

On the other side of the coin, you could tell there was a visible annoyance from the Van Horn regarding Root’s emotional outbursts during the game.

Every pitch counts this time year and thats the main reason DVH wants his guys to stay in check and not let those things determine the outcomes of games.

He was asked if he liked the outburst Root showed after a double play that nearly got him ejected in the sixth inning. 

“Not really,” Van Horn said after the win. “ Not that much. I mean, I want him to stay under control so they can pitch longer. You can only do so much adrenaline  “It’s going to end up backfiring on you after a while, but his stuff was tremendous, and you know, he was just competing like he said.

“I think the crowd probably got him going a little bit, and all that was going on. I like the fact that he could still throw the ball over the plate, and spin it and still throw it over the plate. He did a great job. He gave us seven strong innings. 

Root transferred to Arkansas from East Carolina.

“…Zach’s a super competitor and he wanted to get better,” Van Horn said. “I mean, his outing last weekend was outstanding as well. I feel like he came here because he felt like he could get better. He wanted to pitch for (Arkansas pitching) Coach (Matt) Hobbs, and you know, he’s been everything we were hoping, and more honestly,”

Another fiery flame thrower will toe the rubber for the Vols on Sunday in Liam Doyle, a projected top draft pick in this year’s MLB Draft. 

He did give up 11 hits and 7 runs in his last outing against Arkansas on May 16.

“Liam happened to be on game two as well – his last appearance in Fayetteville a couple of weeks ago – because of a relief appearance, he started the day against Auburn on a Sunday, so looking out for the kid’s arm,” Vitello said.  “I think Frank’s good about that, and he puts a bug in my ear.

“But don’t get me wrong, self serving, we’re looking out for ourselves too. We want the guy that we’re using to try and put him in the best position possible to succeed. So tomorrow will be similar chaos. So I’m comfortable with the group of guys that.”

Tennessee catcher Cannon Peebles served a suspension after being ejected in the final game of the Knoxville Regional and Vitello is happy to get him back in the lineup on Sunday. 

“Yeah, I think maybe just a little bit of familiarity,” Vitello said. “It is a deal. He’s a switch hitter, but it is a deal where he adds some balance to the lineup when he’s hitting left-handed. He’s also really played well for us.”

Vols second baseman Dean Curley was the star of the Tennessee offense hammering a two-run home run over the left-center wall to give the Vols their only lead of the game. 

The lead was short lived, in the bottom half of the fifth frame Hogs catcher Ryder Helfrick grabbed the lead back with his own two-run homer over the left field wall, to recapture the lead for good. 

Game two will be another chess match like Saturday’s loss, but the head Vol expects it to be more of the same. He knows Arkansas will make Doyle work for strikes and be a little more selectively aggressive at the plate. 

“They were aggressive, for sure,” Vitello said,. “ nd from the beginning, I think he just never really kind of had his rhythm. I looked at it. I don’t have a magic answer for you. What stuck out to me, and I kind of beat this drum a ton with our local media, is he then the next week, was so frustrated with it, he tried to undo it. So I know he’s looked at it, Frank’s looked at it, and it’s kind of like, again, I’ll steal awards from Dean— baseball, it’s a new day.”

Photo by John D. James