Former Tennessee infielder Ariel Antigua has announced he is transferring to Arizona after three seasons with the Volunteers.
Antigua was part of Tennessee’s team that captured the program’s first national championship two seasons ago. Antigua appeared in the final two games of the College World Series against No. 3 Texas A&M as a true freshman.
He is Arizona’s first transfer from an SEC program since former coach Jay Johnson signed Alabama right-hander Davis Vainer in 2019. Vainer only pitched one inning for the Wildcats in 2020 because of an injury and the pandemic halting play. He didn’t return in 2021.
Antigua, a Lake Worth (Fla.) native who is 5-foot-8 and 185 pounds, had 64 career games at Tennessee, mostly as a reserve shortstop, across his three seasons in Knoxville.
Antigua saw limited action this season, appearing in 20 games while hitting .200 with a .702 OPS and nine RBIs. He suffered from a shoulder injury during the season.
He recorded the first home run of his college career in March against Oakland.
Antigua signed with former Tennessee coach Tony Vitello, now the San Francisco Giants’ manager, 2023 after once being committed to South Carolina. He was ranked by Perfect Game at the No. 137 overall player, the No. 34 shortstop and the No. 21 player from Florida.
The Trinity Christian Academy product was a three-time Preseason Underclass All-Region Team selection during his prep career. He participated in the 2022 Perfect Game National Showcase.
Arizona is coming off a humbling 19-34 season after reaching the College World Series last season. Arizona coach Chip Hale has mentioned personnel will be attracted who fit into the culture he learned from Jerry Kindall.
Injuries, inexperience and a struggling lineup affected Arizona. Hale let go of former hitting coach Toby DeMello, in an effort to try to reinvigorate his lineup.
Hale hired Saint Mary’s associate head coach Jack Meggs as hitting coach. Meggs, 31, coached a lineup that led the West Coast Conference in hitting the past two years. The Gaels’ .327 batting average ranked third nationally.
Saint Mary’s, which won the WCC Tournament the last two seasons, upset eventual College World Series qualifier Oregon State in Corvallis, Ore., last year, and then then twice beat No. 1 overall seed UCLA before falling in the Los Angeles Regional final to Cal Poly this year.
Competition for Antigua for opportunities in the infield, including at shortstop, should help him and Arizona.
A total of 12 players from Arizona have entered the transfer portal, including infielders Jackson Forbes (who has committed to San Diego) and Ethan Guerra.
Tyler Bickers and Mathis Meurant have also exhausted their eligibility.
Infielders Cash Brennan, Nate Novitske and Gavin Triezenberg are holdovers who have not entered the transfer portal.
Three high school infielders are joining the Wildcats after signing in November — Jory Crocker, Lyndon Lee and Abram Sherrin.
Antigua is the first incoming player in the transfer portal who is an infielder. Three right-handed pitchers have announced they are transferring to Arizona — Garrett Ahern of Grand Canyon, McCarty English of Southern Miss and Collin Cobb of Williston (N.D.) State Junior College.
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