Wednesday marked the two-year anniversary of when Tennessee baseball coach Tony Vitello knew he had something special with Christian Moore.
“His freshman year, there was an SEC series on the road where he kind of seemed to be a man possessed,” Vitello said to reporters after this past Sunday’s 13-11, series-clinching win at Kentucky in which Moore hit three home runs. “He really stuck out.”
On April 24, 2022, the top-ranked Volunteers were experiencing an unprecedented season but were enduring a tough series finale at Florida, trailing the Gators 4-1 in the ninth inning. Moore was given the opportunity that afternoon to be the designated hitter, and his two-run single wound up sending the game into extra innings.
In the 11th inning, Moore hit a two-run homer to propel Tennessee to a 6-4 triumph.
The 6-foot-1, 216-pounder from Brooklyn, New York, hit .305 with 10 homers in 51 games as a freshman and followed that up last year by hitting .304 with 17 homers in 66 contests. Through 40 games this year, the second baseman and leadoff hitter has been a “man possessed” on a daily basis, hitting .373 with 19 homers.