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On Feb. 17, Vanderbilt baseball hit its 13th home run of the season.
In 2025, the Commodores didn't hit their 13th home run until March 16.
In a 13-2 win over Eastern Michigan, No. 18 Vanderbilt (2-2) showed that a power surge in its season-opening tournament in Texas was no fluke. The Commodores hit four more home runs in the run-rule victory at Hawkins Field against the Eagles (1-3), including two from Brodie Johnston.
Johnston, a sophomore, already has five home runs this season, a milestone he didn't reach in 2025 until March 25. Perhaps more importantly, he has two walks and only one strikeout. Last season, Johnston hit 15 home runs, 14 doubles and a triple, but he walked 10 times and struck out 68. Johnston said tweaks to his swing and his approach have him feeling better than ever.
"Just changing my approach at the plate, not trying to do too much," Johnston said. "Just really staying with our zone that we're looking at, and that's helped me just not chase a lot this year."
New hitting coach Jason Esposito has helped Vanderbilt to get to more power than last season, when it finished 13th in the SEC with 66 home runs. Johnston is helping lead that charge along with Colin Barczi (three home runs this season) and Braden Holcomb (two home runs, including one against Eastern Michigan). There are other players with power in the lineup, too. Redshirt freshman Tommy Goodin hit his first career home run against the Eagles, Logan Johnstone has two doubles and a home run so far and Ryker Waite has a double and a homer.
The bottom of the order struggles that plagued the Commodores in Texas weren't an issue in the home opener. Logan Johnstone drew four walks out of the leadoff spot, Rustan Rigdon had two singles and a walk, Carter Johnstone had two singles and Ryker Waite had a single, a double and a walk.
"I think it just goes all back to approach," Holcomb said. "Just really hunting the zone and looking for a pitch we can do some damage on and how hard we've worked during the preseason. ... We get a good swing on the ball and get a good pitch to hit, we're going to do some damage."
Although Corbin brought in several transfers to round out the lineup, the increased power has mostly come via breakouts by players who were already on the roster: Holcomb and Barczi are juniors, Johnston and Waite sophomores and Goodin a redshirt freshman.
While Holcomb, Johnston and Barczi had everyday playing experience in 2025, Waite appeared in just eight games and recorded six plate appearances in 2025. Goodin didn't play at all.
"It speaks to their hunger," Corbin said. "I think that's what happens. First of all, patience. Not a lot of kids these days have patience, but I think both of them had patience. ... They stayed in house and got better. Goody obviously put on a lot of strength. Ryker just learned from (Jonathan Vastine) and then went off this summer and was one of the better players up there in the Cape. So I think they just took advantage of the time that they didn't play and became very resourceful and made themselves good players."
Aria Gerson covers Vanderbilt athletics for The Tennessean. Contact her at [email protected] or on X, @aria_gerson.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Vanderbilt baseball, led by Brodie Johnston, hitting for more power
Continue reading...
In 2025, the Commodores didn't hit their 13th home run until March 16.
In a 13-2 win over Eastern Michigan, No. 18 Vanderbilt (2-2) showed that a power surge in its season-opening tournament in Texas was no fluke. The Commodores hit four more home runs in the run-rule victory at Hawkins Field against the Eagles (1-3), including two from Brodie Johnston.
Johnston, a sophomore, already has five home runs this season, a milestone he didn't reach in 2025 until March 25. Perhaps more importantly, he has two walks and only one strikeout. Last season, Johnston hit 15 home runs, 14 doubles and a triple, but he walked 10 times and struck out 68. Johnston said tweaks to his swing and his approach have him feeling better than ever.
"Just changing my approach at the plate, not trying to do too much," Johnston said. "Just really staying with our zone that we're looking at, and that's helped me just not chase a lot this year."
New hitting coach Jason Esposito has helped Vanderbilt to get to more power than last season, when it finished 13th in the SEC with 66 home runs. Johnston is helping lead that charge along with Colin Barczi (three home runs this season) and Braden Holcomb (two home runs, including one against Eastern Michigan). There are other players with power in the lineup, too. Redshirt freshman Tommy Goodin hit his first career home run against the Eagles, Logan Johnstone has two doubles and a home run so far and Ryker Waite has a double and a homer.
The bottom of the order struggles that plagued the Commodores in Texas weren't an issue in the home opener. Logan Johnstone drew four walks out of the leadoff spot, Rustan Rigdon had two singles and a walk, Carter Johnstone had two singles and Ryker Waite had a single, a double and a walk.
"I think it just goes all back to approach," Holcomb said. "Just really hunting the zone and looking for a pitch we can do some damage on and how hard we've worked during the preseason. ... We get a good swing on the ball and get a good pitch to hit, we're going to do some damage."
Although Corbin brought in several transfers to round out the lineup, the increased power has mostly come via breakouts by players who were already on the roster: Holcomb and Barczi are juniors, Johnston and Waite sophomores and Goodin a redshirt freshman.
While Holcomb, Johnston and Barczi had everyday playing experience in 2025, Waite appeared in just eight games and recorded six plate appearances in 2025. Goodin didn't play at all.
"It speaks to their hunger," Corbin said. "I think that's what happens. First of all, patience. Not a lot of kids these days have patience, but I think both of them had patience. ... They stayed in house and got better. Goody obviously put on a lot of strength. Ryker just learned from (Jonathan Vastine) and then went off this summer and was one of the better players up there in the Cape. So I think they just took advantage of the time that they didn't play and became very resourceful and made themselves good players."
Aria Gerson covers Vanderbilt athletics for The Tennessean. Contact her at [email protected] or on X, @aria_gerson.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Vanderbilt baseball, led by Brodie Johnston, hitting for more power
Continue reading...
