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AJ Russell is still on the mend as he rehabs from Tommy John surgery, but that doesn’t mean Tennessee head coach Tony Vitello believes his star pitcher isn’t in the plans for the 2025 season.
In fact, Vitello told reporters on Wednesday that he thinks his right-hander is progressing very well so far, and Vitello went so far as to say he thinks Russell will be available to pitch for the Volunteers at some point this season.
“He looks so good physically right now. I think he’s in line with what he should be. By the halfway point (of this season), he’ll be pitching for us,” said Vitello.
Russell is going to try to make it back in 2025 to help Tennessee defend its national championship. The Volunteers won the first title in program history in 2024, and on Monday they were ranked No. 3 in Baseball America’s preseason Top 25.
Russell was a 2024 second-team NCBWA Preseason All-American after being a third-team NCBWA All-American in 2023. Russell was also a first-team NCBWA Freshman All-American in 2023.
If Vitello is right with his assessment on Russell for 2025, it would be a huge lift for the Volunteers as they try to get back to Omaha and defend their title.
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Cory Nightingale, a former sportswriter and sports editor at the Miami Herald and Palm Beach Post, is a South Florida-based freelance writer who covers Alabama for SaturdayDownSouth.com.
