Camden Bates, a former Tennessee baseball freshman infielder, has announced his desire to transfer to Arizona State.
Camden Bates, a former Tennessee baseball freshman infielder, has confirmed his commitment to Arizona State after entering the transfer portal on July 3. Bates was one of eight Vols that entered the portal this summer.
“God is so good!” Bates posted on Instagram. “Thank you, Tennessee, for an incredible first year and all of the contacts I was able to develop. I’m delighted to report that I’ll be transferring to Arizona State University. Thank you to everyone who has assisted me on my trip.”
Bates had eight at-bats in ten games this season for the Vols. He had two hits to reach.250. During a midweek win over Alabama A&M, one of his two hits was a three-run home run to left field, his first of his career.
Perfect Game ranks the Washington, Oklahoma native as the No. 377 overall prospect in the 2023 class. He was regarded as the No. 74 overall shortstop and the No. 4 overall talent in the state of Oklahoma coming out of Washington High School.
Bates joined third baseman Zane Denton, middle infielder Bradke Lohry, and utility player Robin Villeneuve in the gateway this summer. Denton entered the gateway after deciding to sit out this past season. He has subsequently committed to Austin Peay, while Lohry and Villeneuve have committed to USF and Texas Tech, respectively.
Wyatt Evans, a redshirt-sophomore left-handed pitcher, was the first player to enter the portal after being dropped from the active roster before the season. Tennessee freshmen pitchers Matthew Dallas, Daniel Parris, and Derek Schaefer have also decided to transfer. Evans committed to South Carolina, Dallas committed to Wake Forest, and Schaefer transferred to Arizona State.
Last month, the Vols earned their first national championship after making their sixth trip in the Men’s College World Series. It was their first trip in the CWS Finals since 1951, when they were runners-up to Oklahoma.
Tennessee baseball became the first No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament to win the national championship since Miami in 1999. UT also became the first SEC team to win 60 games in a single season, and only the fourth conference club to win the SEC regular season, SEC Tournament, and NCAA Men’s College World Series all in the same year.
Tony Vitello’s first national championship as Tennessee’s head coach came in his fifth NCAA Tournament appearance and the team’s third trip to Omaha in the last four seasons. UT is the only SEC program and one of only two teams in the country (Virginia) to have appeared in the College World Series three of the last four years (2021, 2023, and 2024). It recently completed its first back-to-back trips.
Tennessee baseball had a 27-11 record in its five NCAA Tournament appearances under Vitello. Vitello’s 27 NCAA Tournament victories tie him for the most in UT history with the legendary Rod Delmonico, who leads the program’s all-time wins total (699) and NCAA Tournament total (27). Delmonico was 27-19 overall in eight NCAA Tournament appearances, leading the Vols to the College World Series three times (1995, 2001, and 2005).
