KNOXVILLE — With the 2020 Major League Baseball season indefinitely placed on hold due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a pair of players have returned home to Knoxville and are attempting to stay in shape by working out together while they continue to wait to play again.
Nick Senzel of the Cincinnati Reds and Lane Thomas of the St. Louis Cardinals have returned to East Tennessee and are working together.
Senzel, a Farragut High School graduate, played three seasons for the University of Tennessee before the Reds drafted the outfielder with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2016 MLB Draft.
For Cincinnati, Senzel has a .256 lifetime batting average. He hit 12 home runs and drove in 42 runs during his 2019 rookie season.
Thomas, a Bearden High School product, committed to play for the Vols as a sophomore in 2012, but he opted to go pro after graduating from high school. He was drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in the fifth round of the 2014 MLB Draft.
Thomas made his Major League debut with St. Louis. The center fielder appeared in his first big league game last April.
He hit .316 last year for the Cardinals, clubbing four home runs and driving in 12 runs.