Tennessee baseball received news of a significant injury with only about 3 weeks left until the season begins.

Ace pitcher Blake Tidwell suffered a shoulder injury, and will miss significant time, according to WATE. A Tennessee spokesperson also confirmed the news to Rocky Top Insider on Thursday, and said that Tennessee’s medical team and Tidwell are coming up with a rehab plan, but are not setting a timetable on his return.

The sophomore from Loretto, Tennessee, had a tremendous freshman season in 2021. Tidwell led all Tennessee pitchers with 18 starts and went 10-3 with a 3.74 ERA (best among starting pitchers) and finished second on the team with 90 strikeouts and 98.2 innings pitched. His 10 victories were the second most by a freshman in program history.

Tidwell, the Sunday starter last season, started against Texas in the College World Series, striking out three batters in 3 innings. Tidwell pitched the second-most innings on the team at 98.2, only behind former Tennessee starting pitcher Chad Dallas. Additionally, Tidwell ended the season with an ERA of 3.74 and a final record of 10-3.

Tidwell already received plenty of preseason accolades ahead of this season, including a first team selection for the 2022 Collegiate Baseball Newspaper Preseason All-American, and was a second-team choice on the
2022 Perfect Game Preseason All-American team.