2014 'Vandy Boys' Win First National Championship
2014 'Vandy Boys' Win First National Championship
2014 Vanderbilt time that was loaded with future MLB talent recognized
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Pregame Pepper
Did you know…
. . . In all, 51 Vanderbilt alums have reached the majors, though that number does include players who began their career at Vandy and transferred elsewhere as well as those who were drafted from the school.
The first Vanderbilt alum to make the majors was Ben Sanders in 1888. Eleven alum have been All-Star selections, led by David Price with five Midseason Classic nods. Joey Cora leads Vandy alumni with 1,119 MLB games played while Scott Sanderson has the most innings pitched by an alum with 2,561 2/3.
Leading Off
Vanderbilt 2014 Team Wins School’s First Championship
By Richard Cuicchi
Tim Corbin, Vanderbilt University’s head baseball coach since 2003, has brought the school’s program to prominence while competing in the perennially-tough Southeastern Conference. Corbin has been no stranger to turning out future professional players over the years, including numerous noteworthy major leaguers. The 2014 team that won the university’s first national championship in a men’s sport was particularly stacked with talent. Of the 34 players on the Vandy roster, 18 of them were eventually drafted, while 24 have played in the professional ranks.
When Corbin took over the program in 2003, Vanderbilt hadn’t finished above .500 in the SEC since 1980. His first team made it to the SEC Tournament for the first time in seven years.
David Price, Ryan Flaherty, Pedro Alvarez, Mike Minor, Sonny Gray, Mike Yastrzemski, and Tony Kemp were among the major-league players who came through Corbin’s program before 2014.
The 2014 roster was comprised of a group of relatively young players. Corbin had restocked the roster from the 2013 team, which set an SEC record for best conference record (28-3), with a total of 15 freshmen. There were only two seniors, neither of whom saw significant action. Two junior-class position players and two junior-class pitchers were regulars, while the rest of Corbin’s starting lineup consisted of sophomores and freshmen.
The 2014 edition of the Commodores’ starting lineup included the following players. Their class, position, draft round, and professional experience are noted.
Zander Wiel, Sophomore 1B, 12th-round pick of the Twins in 2015, reached Triple-A.
Dansby Swanson, Sophomore 2B, 1st-round pick of the Diamondbacks in 2015, MLB debut 2016.
Vince Conde, Junior SS, 9th-round pick of the Yankees in 2014, reached Triple-A.
Xavier Turner, Sophomore 3B, 19th-round pick of the Rangers in 2015, Single-A.
Bryan Reynolds, Freshman OF, 2nd-round pick of the Giants in 2016, MLB debut 2019.
Rhett Wiseman, Sophomore OF; 3rd-round pick of the Nationals in 2015, reached Double-A.
John Norwood, Junior OF; Signed with the Marlins in 2014 as Non-Drafted Free Agent, reached Double-A
Jason Delay, Freshman C; 4th-round draft pick of the Pirates in 2017, MLB debut 2022.
The starting pitchers and primary relievers included:
Walker Buehler, Sophomore SP, 1st-round pick of the Dodgers in 2015, MLB debut 2017.
Tyler Beede, Junior SP, 1st-round pick of the Giants in 2014; MLB debut 2018.
Tyler Ferguson, Sophomore SP, 6th-round pick of the Rangers in 2015, reached Triple-A.
Carson Fulmer, Sophomore SP/RP, 1st-round pick of the White Sox in 2015, MLB debut 2016.
Brian Miller, Junior RP, 15th-round pick of Rays in 2014, Single-A.
Adam Ravenelle, Junior RP, 4th-round pick of Tigers in 2014, Double-A.
It shouldn’t have been any surprise about the amount of potential talent on the 2014 team, since 14 of the players had been drafted out of high school.
Vanderbilt had a rough start in its conference schedule, winning only eight of its first 18 games. But the team corrected its course to win nine of its last 12 conference games.
Vanderbilt went undefeated in the Nashville Regional, ousting Oregon in the finals. They advanced to the World Series by defeating Stanford in the Super Regionals. Vandy beat Louisville, UC Irvine, and Texas to earn a spot in the College World Series finals against Virginia.
It was the second time in four seasons that Vanderbilt earned a berth in the CWS. Corbin’s 2011 squad was also talented, producing 12 MLB draftees. The team’s popular nickname “Vandy Boys” was originated by players on that team.
Vanderbilt upset Virginia in the 2014 College World Series finals, winning the third game, 3-2. The Vandy bullpen was a key factor in capturing the title. Swanson was named the Most Outstanding Player.
After the Series, Corbin offered his assessment of his youthful team. “There was never a crack in our strong foundation. This group grew together. They were consumed with one another the last month and a half.” When Corbin looked back on his first year with the program in 2003, he offered, “ We certainly had visions of this [championship] someday, but they were so far distant at certain times.”
Reynolds and Swanson were the batting stars for the team, with slash lines of .338/.395/.480 and .333/.411/.475, respectively. Reynolds was the RBI leader (54), followed by Conte (50). Reynolds’s and Swanson’s college careers translated well into the big leagues, as both have posted All-Star seasons. Both have had seasons where they received votes for NL Most Valuable Player.
Buehler led the team in wins (12), while Fulmer posted the best ERA (1.98) among the starters. In 30 relief appearances, Miller had an impressive 1.93 ERA. In 16 relief appearances, Fulmer was the team leader in saves (10). Beede led the team in strikeouts (111), averaging slightly more than one per inning. In the majors, Buehler has achieved two All-Star seasons with the Dodgers, garnering fourth place in the 2021 voting for the NL Cy Young Award.
Two additional Commodore players from the 2014 team eventually reached the majors, making a total of eight from the CWS champions. Ben Bowden, a freshman pitcher with 12 appearances, was selected in the second round of the 2016 draft by the Rockies and made his MLB debut in
2021. Jordan Sheffield, a freshman pitcher who did not make an appearance for Vandy in 2014, was the first-round pick of the Rockies in 2016. He also made his MLB debut in 2021.
Virginia got its revenge over Vanderbilt in 2015 when the Cavaliers defeated the Vandy Boys in the CWS finals for the national championship. The Commodores won their second CWS in 2019 (vs. Michigan) and were runner-up in 2021 (vs. Mississippi State).
Richard Cuicchi has been a SABR member since 1983. He has contributed to over 25 SABR BioProject and Games Project books. He writes about New Orleans baseball history for CrescentCitySorts.com. He maintains the Baseball Relatives website where he posts annual compilations of baseball’s family relationships in the majors and minors. He writes a weekly blog post for his TheTenthInning.com website.
Extra Innings
Players who played college baseball comprise only approximately 15% of all Major League Baseball Hall of Fame enshrinees. Michigan leads the way with three HOF players (Barry Larkin, Charlie Gehringer, George Sisler) while five schools each have seen two former players elected.
Six players have received 70% of voting for the Hall of Fame in the 2024 ballot as of this writing. Two (Todd Helton and Billy Wagner) played college baseball, two were drafted out of high school, and two were signed as international free agents.