Cannon Peebles wanted to clap for AJ Russell but he couldn’t.

The Tennessee baseball catcher did the best he could, pounding his right hand into his glove three times. 

Russell stood 100 feet away on the right-field warning track, firing the ball toward Peebles as he was introduced at Lindsey Nelson Stadium as the Vols starting pitcher against North Alabama. 

“I have been looking forward to this for a long time with sitting out a lot last year and watching the first few games of this year,” Russell said. “I just kind of went out there and had fun.”

Russell made his much-anticipated return Tuesday, eight months after undergoing Tommy John surgery. He was electric, striking out the three batters he faced looking in an inning of work in No. 1 Tennessee’s 7-5 win at Lindsey Nelson Stadium. 

AJ Russell struck out the side in his return for Tennessee vs North Alabama

Vols coach Tony Vitello made the offer Tuesday morning.

Would Russell, who starred at Franklin High located south of Nashville, rather pitch against North Alabama or face Tennessee’s hitters Wednesday? It wasn’t a real question to Russell. He wanted to throw in a game.

“I got the text in class and I was kind of fidgeting the rest of the day,” Russell said.

Russell was announced as the starter at 3:10 p.m. ET. At 3:58, he emerged from the Tennessee dugout to warm up. At 4:32, he threw a 94 mph fastball for a ball on his first pitch since May 26 in the SEC Tournament. 

“I just let it rip,” Russell said.

Vitello told him he had five batters. He only faced three. 

Russell touched 96 mph twice, including to strike out North Alabama leadoff hitter Jonathan Lane in an eight-pitch at-bat.

He sprinkled in 86 mph breaking balls, but leaned on his deceptive fastball that has him projected to be an early pick in the 2025 MLB Draft. He struck out Alex Wilson with a 95 mph fastball, then did the same for a four-pitch strikeout of Matthew Delgado.

The junior threw 11 of 17 pitches for strikes, looking like he did as a star reliever two years ago and as the expected ace last season.

“I was just glad he didn’t try to do too much,” Vitello said. “It almost looked like he was being more methodical than I have ever seen him.”

How AJ Russell returned eight months after Tommy John surgery

Vitello’s favorite moment from Russell’s return wasn’t a pitch. It was a hug between Russell and longtime Vols trainer Jeff Wood.

The pitcher and trainer have spent a lot of time together in the past year. Russell started strong as Tennessee’s Friday night starter last season. But soreness showed up early in the season. He sat out, then came back and sat out again. He came back one more time before he was shut down in May and destined for surgery in June. 

“I learned how much this game means to me and how much I love pitching,” Russell said of the past year. 

Russell worked extensively with pitching coach Frank Anderson and director of pitching performance Josh Reynolds during his rehab, which Vitello said he attacked like a “psycho.”

He got past the worry and fear the first time he threw the ball when it felt like it used to. He has thrown bullpens and to live hitters in recent weeks. Two weeks ago, Russell saw the ball start moving the way he wanted it to. 

“He basically got the point where we couldn’t slow him down,” Vitello said.

NO. 1: Tennessee baseball is No. 1 team in nation after 7-0 start under Tony Vitello

The Vols will continue to work Russell back into the fold carefully. His next outing likely will be one inning as he works toward throwing multiple innings. Vitello knows Russell ultimately wants to start, which the Vols envisioned as a possibly at the midpoint of SEC play.

“His work and his character will lead him into forcing our hand a little quicker than we want,” Vitello said. “But we’re also going to be pretty dang patient.”

The Vols burst out of the dugout at the end of Russell’s inning Tuesday. He offered a shrug as he walked toward the gap to enter the dugout.

Russell was back.

Mike Wilson covers University of Tennessee athletics. Email him at michael.wilson@knoxnews.com and follow him on X @ByMikeWilson or Bluesky @bymikewilson.bsky.social. If you enjoy Mike’s coverage, consider a digital subscription that will allow you access to all of it.