Tennessee’s Ben Joyce throws fastest pitch in college baseball history
Ben Joyce broke one record Sunday, and just missed breaking another by a hair.
The University of Tennessee pitcher threw a 105.5 mph fastball in the eighth inning of the team’s win over Auburn. It was the fastest pitch ever thrown in college baseball history, breaking his own record he set in March when he fired a 104 mph fastball against South Carolina. The pitch just barely missed breaking Aroldis Chapman’s MLB record 105.8 mph pitch in 2010.
There was an audible gasp from the crowd as the record-breaking velocity flashed on screens across the stadium. An inning later, Joyce hit 101 mph.
Joyce entered the game in the sixth inning, throwing four innings of scoreless relief while striking out six. He allowed just one hit and didn’t walk anybody. The redshirt junior lowered his season ERA to 0.86 and now has 38 strikeouts in just 21 innings this season.
Joyce and his consistent triple-digit velocity have turned heads across college baseball and MLB just a few months before the 2022 MLB Draft.
This is Joyce’s first season pitching for the Volunteers after redshirting last year upon arriving from Walters State Community College. Tennessee currently has the best record in the SEC at 19-2 and the Volunteers are 40-4 overall.
