Draft:Josh Elander
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Comment: Only one piece of significant coverage. MmeMaigret (talk) 11:59, 6 November 2025 (UTC)
| Current position | |
|---|---|
| Title | Head Coach |
| Team | Tennessee |
| Conference | SEC |
| Record | 0–0 (–) |
| Annual salary | $1 million |
| Biographical details | |
| Born | March 19, 1991 Austin, Texas, U.S. |
| Alma mater | TCU |
| Playing career | |
| 2010-2012 | TCU |
| 2012 | Danville Braves |
| 2013 | Lynchburg Hillcats |
| 2013 | Rome Braves |
| 2014 | Lynchburg Hillcats |
| 2015 | Kane County Cougars |
| Positions | Catcher, OF |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 2016 | TCU (asst.) |
| 2017 | Arkansas (asst.) |
| 2018-2025 | Tennessee (asst.) |
| 2026-present | Tennessee |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 0–0 (–) |
Joshua Lucas Elander (born March 19, 1991) is an American college baseball coach, and a former minor league baseball player, who is currently the head baseball coach at the University of Tennessee. He also spent eight seasons as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator under head coach Tony Vitello.[1]. During his time as an assistant, the Volunteers made six NCAA regionals (2019, 2021-2025), four NCAA super regionals (2021-2024), and three College World Series appearances (2021, 2023, 2024), winning the College World Series National Championship in 2024 over Texas A&M for the Volunteers’ first-ever national title[2][3][4].
Education and playing career
[edit]A native of Round Rock, Texas, Elander attended Texas Christian University, where he played for the Horned Frogs from 2010-12 under head coach Jim Schlossnagle.
As a freshman, he was selected for the 2010 Louisville Slugger and Ping!Baseball Freshman All-American team, after batting .356 with 69 hits and 33 RBIs, and helping TCU reach the College World Series. As a sophomore, Elander earned a spot on the USA Baseball Collegiate National Team in 2011[1][5].
Minor leagues
[edit]Elander was drafted by the Atlanta Braves in the sixth round of the 2012 MLB Draft. His best season came in 2013, when he was named the Atlanta Braves' Minor League Player of the Year and received their Hank Aaron Award as the top hitter in the minor leagues.
On April 3, 2015, he was traded to the Arizona Diamondbacks for Trevor Cahill and cash considerations, but he was ultimately released on May 13, 2015[1][6][7][8]. During his professional career, he hit .273 with 21 home runs and 135 RBIs in 222 career games.
Coaching career
[edit]Assistant coach (2016-2025)
[edit]Following his playing career, Elander returned to his alma mater, TCU, as a student assistant. He completed his degree in communications from TCU in 2016, while the Horned Frogs reached the College World Series for the third consecutive year[1]. The next year, he joined the University of Arkansas coaching staff as a volunteer assistant, where he developed Grant Koch into a first team All-SEC catcher and USA Baseball Collegiate National team member[1][9].
In 2018, he joined Tony Vitello's staff at the University of Tennessee, where the Volunteers improved their offensive numbers across the board. As hitting coach, he developed Tennessee's top offensive players. The Volunteers led the nation in 2022 with 158 home runs (eclipsing the school record by 51), and led the nation in on base percentage (.419), runs (613), and slugging percentage (.604)[1].
In 2024, Elander coached four All-Americans in Blake Burke, Christian Moore, Dylan Dreiling, and Dean Curley, contributing to a home run record for the program, and the second most in collegiate baseball history at 184. Five players hit 20 or more home runs for the first time in NCAA history, led by Moore (34), Dreiling, 23, Billy Amick (23), Burke (20), and Kavares Tears (20). After winning the SEC regular season, the SEC Tournament, the Knoxville Regional, and the Knoxville Super Regional, the Volunteers reached the College World Series. In the finals, Elander's team faced his former collegiate coach, Jim Schlossnagle and the Texas A&M Aggies, but the Volunteers came back with a win in Game 3 for the national championship in the program's history, and a 60-13 record.[10][11][12][13][14][15]
Elander has also secured eight straight Top-15 recruiting classes, with the No. 1 rated classes for 2024 and 2025[1].
Tennessee (2026-present)
[edit]On October 25, 2025, Elander became the 26th head coach in Tennessee Volunteers baseball program history after Tony Vitello left to become the manager of the San Francisco Giants[16]
Head coaching record
[edit]| Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tennessee Volunteers (Southeastern Conference) (2026–present) | |||||||||
| 2026 | Tennessee | 0-0 | 0-0 | ||||||
| Tennessee: | 0–0 (–) | 0–0 (–) | |||||||
| Total: | 0–0 (–) | ||||||||
|
National champion
Postseason invitational champion
| |||||||||
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d e f g "Josh Elander - Baseball Coach". University of Tennessee Athletics. Retrieved 2025-10-30.
- ^ Wilson, Mike (May 18, 2024). "Tennessee baseball wins share of SEC regular-season championship with South Carolina sweep". Knoxville News Sentinel. Retrieved June 17, 2024.
- ^ Schowalter, Blake (May 26, 2024). "Live Update: Tennessee vs. LSU in SEC Tournament Championship Game". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved June 17, 2024.
- ^ Wilson, Mike (June 9, 2024). "Tennessee baseball slugs to College World Series with decisive Game 3 win vs. Evansville". Knoxville News Sentinel. Retrieved June 17, 2024.
- ^ Staff, TCU 360 (2011-06-14). "TCU players chosen for collegiate national team". TCU 360. Retrieved 2025-10-30.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ "Braves acquire Cahill from Diamondbacks". ESPN.com. 2015-04-03. Retrieved 2025-10-30.
- ^ "Josh Elander - Minor League, College Baseball Statistics - The Baseball Cube". www.thebaseballcube.com. Retrieved 2025-10-30.
- ^ "Josh Elander Stats, Age, Position, Height, Weight, Fantasy & News". MiLB.com. Retrieved 2025-10-30.
- ^ "Grant Koch". Arkansas Razorbacks. 2015-10-01. Retrieved 2025-10-30.
- ^ "Vols Earn No. 1 National Seed for Second Time in Program History". University of Tennessee Athletics. May 27, 2024. Retrieved June 17, 2024.
- ^ Hixson, Elijah (June 11, 2024). "Tennessee gets past Evansville, advances to Omaha". The 1796 – Tennessee Sports. Retrieved June 17, 2024.
- ^ Wilson, Mike (June 14, 2024). "Tennessee baseball walks off College World Series opener on Dylan Dreiling hit". Knoxville News Sentinel. Retrieved June 27, 2024.
- ^ Wilson, Mike; Gray, Nick (June 16, 2024). "Tennessee baseball vs. North Carolina score, highlights: Vols win, now 2–0 in College World Series". Knoxville News Sentinel. Retrieved June 17, 2024.
- ^ Smith, Craig T. (June 19, 2024). "Vols punch ticket to CWS championship series with 7–2 win over Florida State". Rocky Top Talk. Retrieved June 27, 2024.
- ^ "Vols earn first title in baseball with MCWS win". ESPN.com. Associated Press. June 25, 2024. Retrieved June 25, 2024.
- ^ Wilson, Mike. "Inside Josh Elander earning the Tennessee baseball coach job through Danny White's search". Knoxville News Sentinel. Retrieved 2025-10-30.