Evan Russell already had an SEC game with three home runs this season, when he cranked three dingers in Tennessee’s win over LSU on March 28. But he put together an even more remarkable three-homer game in SEC play in No. 3 Tennessee’s 8-4 win over No. 2 Vanderbilt on Saturday.
Russell blasted three home runs, with two of those homers coming against Vanderbilt’s Jack Leiter, who has looked unhittable for most of this season and may be the No. 1 overall pick in the upcoming MLB Draft. And the third dinger was a grand slam with the Vols trailing 4-3 in the eighth inning.
Evan Russell vs. Vandy today:
🍊 3-for-3
🍊 3 HR
🍊 6 RBIHis second 3 HR game in SEC play this season, the most by any player in @Vol_Baseball history. pic.twitter.com/loD8tfeu3e
— SEC Network (@SECNetwork) April 17, 2021
Evan Russell’s grand slam on the first pitch of the AB. pic.twitter.com/VanjwUOEp3
— Mike Wilson (@ByMikeWilson) April 17, 2021
Oh. My. Word.
Evan Russell just blasted a grand slam over left field fence — his third homer of the day — and the #Vols take a 7-4 lead.
In the words of John Ward, “Pandemonium reigns!” pic.twitter.com/JwIxIoLw8U
— Jake Nichols (@jnichols_2121) April 17, 2021
Russell finished the day 3-for-3, with three homers, one walk, and six runs batted in. Rather shockingly, Russell only has a .225 batting average on the season, but he’s certainly made his hits count with nine homers and 20 runs batted in- and with a performance on Saturday that won’t be topped by hitters in college baseball this season.
About Matt Clapp
Matt is an editor/writer at The Comeback and Awful Announcing.
He can be reached by email at mclapp@thecomeback.com.