Kaiden McCarthy committed to Tennessee baseball on Nov. 1 as the first commit of the Josh Elander era.
McCarthy is the No. 59 prospect in the nation and the the top-ranked recruit in Vermont, according to Perfect Game. The right-handed pitcher visited Tennessee in mid-September on a mega-recruiting weekend. He is the No. 8 right-handed pitcher nationally.
He announced his commitment on Instagram.
The 6-foot, 185-pound McCarthy also visited Arizona and Wake Forest before picking the Vols and Elander, who was hired as the coach on Oct. 25 following Tony Vitello‘s Oct. 22 exit to become the manager of the San Francisco Giants.
He the 13th commitment in the 2027 class, which includes 10 top-100 prospects.
Shorstop Dylan Seward is the top-ranked commit as the No. 2 prospect nationally. Shortstop Max Hemenway is the No. 6 prospect and outfielder Sushi Wilson is the No. 22 prospect.
Outfielder Caden Dawson is the No. 25 prospect. Catcher Blake Lundy, a Chattanooga Baylor School star, is No. 29. Shortstop Leo Nockley (No. 34), shortstop Banks Addison (No. 43), right-handed pitcher Bubba Day (No. 51) and right-handed pitcher Brady Buenik (No. 65) round out the top-100 commits.
McCarthy is one of five pitchers committed along with Day, Buenik, right-handed pitcher Quinn Fitzpatrick and left-handed Cooper Burti.
Mike Wilson covers University of Tennessee athletics. Email him at michael.wilson@knoxnews.com and follow him on X @ByMikeWilson. If you enjoy Mike’s coverage, consider a digital subscription that will allow you access to all of it.
