Liam Doyle commits to Tennessee baseball as Ole Miss transfer pitcher

Tennessee baseball had a two-transfer Tuesday at the expense of Ole Miss.

The Vols landed third baseman Andrew Fischer and pitcher Liam Doyle to bolster the 2025 roster and their defense of the national championship.

Doyle boosts the weekend rotation for the Vols. He is 6-5 with a 4.93 ERA in the past two seasons. He struck out 153 with 41 walks in 111⅓ innings. Fischer had an All-SEC season in which he slugged 20 home runs. The 6-foot-1, 205-pound Fischer hit .285 with 20 homers, 57 RBIs, 47 runs and 35 walks.

Former Kennesaw State pitcher Tanner Franklin was the first transfer to commit to UT. Former Louisville infielder Gavin Kilen followed when he committed on July 4.

Andrew Fischer, Liam Doyle commit to Tennessee baseball as Ole Miss transfer

Doyle gives Tennessee a proven SEC starter to slot into its weekend rotation in 2025.

The Vols went into the offseason with a focus on adding a left-handed starter, which it got in Doyle. The 6-foot-2, 220-pound Doyle transferred to Ole Miss from Coastal Carolina after his freshman season. He was 3-4 with a 5.73 ERA with the Rebels in 2024 as the Saturday starter. He struck out 84 in 55 innings with 22 walks in 16 games with 11 starts.

He was 3-1 with a 4.15 ERA with 69 strikeouts and 20 walks in 56⅓ innings pitched at Coastal Carolina. He started seven games in 23 appearances with the Chanticleers.

Fischer  earned second-team All-SEC honors as a designated hitter/utility after slugging .653. He spent his first season at Duke, where he hit a freshman program-record 11 homers. He hit .289 with 33 RBIs in 45 starts with the Blue Devils.

Tennessee baseball has had major success in transfer portal

Tennessee has been to back-to-back College World Series with a big boost from transfers in both seasons.

The Vols added third baseman Billy Amick and his 23 homers as the biggest offensive addition. Dalton Bargo and Cannon Peebles also were key transfers who will be back in the 2025 season on the offensive side. AJ Causey, Nate Snead, and Chris Stamos had pivotal roles on the pitching staff. Causey was one of two pitchers in the nation to win 13 games.

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In 2023, Andrew Lindsey emerged as Tennessee's Friday night starter as a transfer. Maui Ahuna, Zane Denton, and Griffin Merritt were key cogs in the lineup. Denton's three-run homer at Clemson was the biggest swing of the season. The 2023 team also benefitted from two 2022 transfers in pitchers Chase Dollander and Seth Halvorsen.

Mike Wilson covers University of Tennessee athletics. Email him at michael.wilson@knoxnews.com and follow him on Twitter @ByMikeWilson. If you enjoy Mike’s coverage, consider a digital subscription that will allow you access to all of it