BASEBALL: Tennessee’s Rucker, Vanderbilt’s Rocker named TSWA Players of the Week
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Tennessee’s Jake Rucker and Vanderbilt’s Kumar Rocker earned Tennessee Sports Writers Association’s Baseball Player and Pitcher of the Week honors, respectively, for games from April 19-25.
Rucker batted .556 (10-for-18) with four doubles, one home run, three RBIs and six runs scored in four games for the Vols.
The Greenbrier, Tenn., native collected three hits in all three games at Texas A&M, including a solo homer along with two doubles and two runs scored in the series opener against the Aggies.
The junior registered three singles in a 3-for-5 effort in the second contest in College Station and ended the series with two more doubles among three hits as well as a career-best four runs scored and two RBIs.
Rucker is batting .346 overall with 11 doubles, six home runs, 38 RBIs and 33 runs scored in 40 games this season.
Rocker tossed the second complete game of his career, allowing one earned run on just three hits with eight strikeouts against No. 4 Mississippi State.
The Athens, Ga., native gave up a leadoff double to start the game and then retired 24 of the next 26 hitters with only a third inning single and sixth inning hit by pitch.
Rocker set down the side in order in five of the nine innings and did not walk a batter. The Bulldogs plated an unearned run in the ninth on an error and a single.
He posted his nation-leading ninth win of the season, upping his record to 9-1 with a 1.55 ERA over 64.0 innings, allowing 32 hits with 15 walks and 89 strikeouts. Opponents are batting just .143 against the righthander this season.
2021 TSWA BASEBALL PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
February 23 – Andrew Keene, Lincoln Memorial (Player); Gunner Becker, Tusculum University (Pitcher)
March 2 – Dominic Keegan, Vanderbilt (Player); Joshua South, Belmont (Pitcher)
March 10 – Fuzzy Furr, Tusculum University (Player); Elijah Pleasants, Tennessee (Pitcher)
March 16 – Isaiah Thomas, Vanderbilt (Player); Kumar Rocker, Vanderbilt (Pitcher)
March 23 – Liam Spence, Tennessee (Player); Jack Leiter, Vanderbilt (Pitcher)
March 30 – Drew Gilbert, Tennessee (Player); Jack Leiter, Vanderbilt (Pitcher)
April 6 – John Behrends, Belmont (Player); Aaron Brown, Middle Tennessee (Pitcher)
April 13 – Jacob Justice, Bryan College (Player); Jack Leiter, Vanderbilt (Pitcher)
April 20 – Daulton Martin, Tusculum University (Player); Kumar Rocker, Vanderbilt (Pitcher)