Liam Doyle is the first former Tennessee baseball player off the board, and he becomes the highest selected player for the program in nearly a decade.

With the fifth overall pick in the 2025 MLB Draft, the St. Louis Cardinals elected to draw from the Vols with Tennessee ace Doyle. He is the highest draft pick in the Tony Vitello era, and the highest in program history since Nick Senzel went second overall in 2016.

He is the 22nd first-round pick overall for the Vols, and seventh under Vitello.

Doyle’s fastball allows him to be placed on the fast-track trajectory. A high-90s heater that tops out at triple digits, with a whiff rate that sits at 40%, the southpaw is on display with a Major League-ready primary pitch.

During his breakout junior campaign, Doyle mowed his way through SEC lineups to become the conference’s pitcher of the year, as well as an All-American honoree and Golden Spikes Award finalist.

Doyle pitched 95.2 innings on the year, pushing across 164 strikeouts to rank second in the country behind LSU’s Kade Anderson. He pitched to a 3.20 ERA and allowed a .184 batting average against. Doyle’s 15.84 K/9 led the nation and sits higher than MLB star pitcher Paul Skenes’ did during his consensus first-overall draft year in 2023.

In his lone year with Tennessee, Doyle set himself apart in the record books. Doyle passed up former No. 1 overall pick Luke Hochevar for the single-season strikeout record at 164 to clear his 155 set in 2005. He also became the third Tennessee pitcher to earn SEC Pitcher of the Year honors, joining Hochevar and Chase Dollander.

On two occasions, Doyle further cemented himself in historical nights. Against St. Bonaventure on March 7 and Texas A&M on April 4, Doyle did the heavy lifting in no-hit efforts. The first time around against the Bonnies, Doyle turned in 5.2 innings with 13 strikeouts. The next time against an SEC foe, Doyle went 6.0 innings and exited with eight strikeouts. He was removed from the action with a blister formulating on his throwing hand index finger.

Doyle finished SEC play with a 6-3 record with a 3.51 ERA with 90 strikeouts in 59 innings on the mound.

As he moves to the next level, Doyle can make an immediate impact out of a Major League bullpen. Doyle showed signs of that value on two occasions in 2024. In a wonky weekend affected by rain against Auburn, he made two appearances in the weekend — a start and a “relief” appearance. Doyle took the ball as part of a rain-suspended resume to action in extra innings, dealing his way to the win over the Tigers in a pivotal game two to force a rubber match. He threw two innings and struck out three batters before being ejected — but the Vols won the game in the bottom of the 11th to prevent the further need of his services on May 3.

He added a true relief appearance in Game 7 of the Knoxville Regional against Wake Forest in a win-or-go-home scenario. With the lead merely in hand, Doyle got himself warm in the bullpen and trotted to the mound in the seventh inning of the contest. He went on to deliver 2.1 innings of shutout baseball, striking out five batters in the process.

For his career, Doyle has posted a 16-9 record with a 4.13 ERA to go along with 317 strikeouts in 207 innings pitched. Doyle spent all three of his collegiate seasons at a different school, beginning his career with the Chanticleers of Coastal Carolina, before heading to Ole Miss, where he eventually landed at Tennessee.

Regardless of his role in beginning his professional career, Doyle’s services can be utilized well for the Cardinals.