Josh Elander

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. . 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 .

Education and playing career 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 .

Minor leagues 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 . During his professional career, he hit .273 with 21 home runs and 135 RBIs in 222 career games.

Coaching career

Assistant coach (2016-2025) 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 .

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)

Elander has also secured eight straight Top-15 recruiting classes, with the No. 1 rated classes for 2024 and 2025

Head coaching record