Ensley Signs to Kansas City Royals as Free Agent

After spending five years on the Tennessee Volunteers baseball roster, Huntingdon native Hunter Ensley has found a new home field — in Kansas City. Though he rose to become a fan favorite following the 2024 College World Series, the Volunteer went undrafted in the 20-round MLB Draft. On Wednesday, July 16, the Tennessee Baseball Instagram account announced Ensley’s decision to sign an undrafted free agent deal with the Kansas City Royals in Missouri.

Ensley, the son of Marty and Alice Ensley, was Tennessee’s underdog going into the 2024 baseball season and became a staple of the 2025 team. The center fielder joined the team in the 2020-21 season but largely flew under the radar for his first three seasons.

“I guess you could say I thought it was gonna be a little bit easier than, obviously, it is,” Ensley said in an interview with the Banner in 2023. “Coming from Huntingdon, I had big expectations. I wanted to play immediately when I got there, but that wasn’t the case, unfortunately.”

During those first few years on the team, Ensley assumed different responsibilities. “I needed to be a great teammate,” he said. “That’s what I could do to help this team be better, because I wasn’t playing on the field.”

In 2024, Tennessee’s head coach Tony Vitello gave Ensley a chance to prove himself in the starting lineup. That season, Ensley became the face of Tennessee’s perseverance as his efforts led the Vols to earn their first national championship in program history.

In the quarterfinal game against North Carolina, Ensley made a catch that would make headlines and cement his name in Tennessee baseball history. The center-fielder barrelled into the outfield wall to catch a deep fly ball, effectively sending the batter back to the dugout and smudging his eye black on the wall of Charles Schwab Field in Omaha. The moment went viral in sports communities, with the University of Tennessee Vol Shop selling t-shirts with his name and image that said, “I Gave My All for Tennessee Today!” and Alumni Hall selling t-shirts and hats with the phrase “I will run thru a wall for Tennessee today!” printed on them.

Ensley’s iconic efforts for the national title did not end there. Not only did he run into a wall for Tennessee, he also made the winning slide to home plate in the championship game against Texas A&M.

The Knoxville community celebrated Ensley and the Volunteers with a parade through their downtown streets. His photo graces Knoxville billboards and endorses Calhoun’s, a Knoxville BBQ restaurant, and Weigel’s, a regional gas station and convenience store. University of Tennessee students made a documentary highlighting the baseball star, titled “HUNTER.”

More than that, Ensley’s hometown community celebrated “Hunter Ensley Day” with a parade and ceremony on Huntingdon’s Court Square in July 2024. Huntingdon’s mayor, director of schools and high school football and baseball coaches spoke highly of Ensley, who modestly thanked them for the celebration.

Ensley returned as a starter for his redshirt senior season in 2025, during which he hit .336 with ten home runs, 17 doubles and 62 RBIs. He remained a fan favorite and built a reputation for confidently running into outfield walls when needed.

The Tennessee Vols ended their 2025 season, Ensley’s final season of eligibility, after losing to Arkansas in the Fayetteville Super Regional.

Ensley’s decision to join the Kansas City Royals followed the two-day, twenty-round MLB Draft during which nine of his teammates were drafted.

Because he is out of eligible years at Tennessee and was unselected in the draft, Ensley became available to sign with a professional team as a free agent. The Royals actively pursued Ensley, and the two parties agreed to a deal.

Ensley joins former Vols AJ Causey and Drew Beam in the Royals system.