Vanderbilt Baseball Adds Transfer From Familiar SEC Foe – Sports Illustrated

Vanderbilt baseball has started to get more busy with this transfer portal cycle, adding its third player within less than 24 hours.
Per his own account on Twitter/X, now-former Missouri infielder freshman Blaize Ward has decided to transfer to Vanderbilt. Ward posted a picture with the word “VandyBoys” on it and the caption being the word “COMMITTED” with the anchor emoji.
Ward transfers to Vanderbilt after spending his freshman year with Missouri, where he won the SEC Co-Freshman of the Week award twice during the 2026 season. Ward finished the season with a .296 average, four home runs and 33 RBIs. Ward also had a slash line of .323/.411/.427 during SEC play.
Ward is also a familiar face to Vanderbilt, too. The Commodores traveled to Columbia, Missouri for a series in the penultimate weekend of the regular season in mid-May. In that three-game series, Ward went 6-for-13 at the plate with four RBIs. Vanderbilt lost two of three games in that series.
Ward is a critical addition for Vanderbilt’s offense this season. Ward is still young in his college career and has already proven that he can compete at the SEC level. What will be interesting to see with Ward’s arrival at Vanderbilt is how he develops under Commodores’ hitting coach Jason Esposito.
This past season, Esposito’s coaching helped Vanderbilt take off offensively. Vanderbilt was one of the most dangerous offenses in the SEC and posed as a huge threat to put runs on the board at any time. Maybe Ward can develop as a hitter from a hitting power perspective under his new coaching.
Ward is the third player Vanderbilt has gotten from the transfer portal. Monday night, the Commodores received a commitment from Wofford outfielder Niko Brini before getting a massive pickup with Maryland slugging transfer Bud Coombs late Tuesday morning.
Defensively, Ward has the opportunity to cement Vanderbilt’s infield. The Commodores have a good core between Tommy Goodin, Brodie Johnstone and Ryker Waite, but they lost a big piece with the departure of Mike Mancini. Perhaps Ward could be the one that fills that hole, especially after Carter Johnstone entered the transfer portal a week ago.
Vanderbilt is looking to build a roster this offseason that will help it get back to the NCAA Tournament. The Commodores lost their 19-year tournament streak this past season and are hoping the additions they have gotten so far this week will get them back to the postseason.
Follow us on Twitter/X, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Threads and Blue Sky for the latest news.
Loading recommendations… Please wait while we load personalized content recommendations
Graham Baakko is a writer for Vanderbilt Commodores On SI, primarily covering football, basketball and baseball. Graham is a recent graduate from the University of Alabama, where he wrote for The Crimson White, WVUA-FM, WVUA 23 as he covered a variety of Crimson Tide sports. He also covered South Carolina athletics as a sportswriting intern for GamecockCentral.
© 2026 ABG-SI LLC – SPORTS ILLUSTRATED IS A REGISTERED TRADEMARK OF ABG-SI LLC. – All Rights Reserved. The content on this site is for entertainment and educational purposes only. Betting and gambling content is intended for individuals 21+ and is based on individual commentators' opinions and not that of Sports Illustrated or its affiliates, licensees and related brands. All picks and predictions are suggestions only and not a guarantee of success or profit. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, crisis counseling and referral services can be accessed by calling 1-800-GAMBLER.

source