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Kentrail Davis can't get away from the comparisons.

Everywhere he turns, scouts and coaches have likened his style of baseball to former Minnesota Twins star Kirby Puckett.

"I've been hearing that since the 10th grade," Tennessee's freshman center fielder said. "He's a little before my time, but I've seen highlights of him so I guess it's cool."

It's way cool for UT first-year coach Todd Raleigh.

His eyes do a little dance and light up when he talks about the potential of the Vols' newcomer from Theodore, Ala.

"You guys are really going to like Kentrail Davis," Raleigh said. "He's a real player and he's going to be a good one."

Davis has that short, powerful, compact frame (5-foot-9, 198 pounds) that elicits the Puckett references.

"He's probably one of the strongest kids on our team and he gets after it every single day," Raleigh said. "He can hit for average and he can hit for some power.

"I'm not saying he's going to hit 20 his first year, but he's got some juice in his bat."

Davis had his chances to take his bat elsewhere. He was a 14th-round draft pick of the Colorado Rockies, but chose the college route.

He even took some good-natured ribbing from Rockies star Todd Helton last week during UT's Leadoff Banquet.

"We were taking a picture together and he looked at me and asked if I was the guy drafted by the Rockies," Davis said. "I said, 'yeah,' and he just said 'Come on man.'

"He just laughed about it."

Another chance at the pros could come soon enough for Davis, but right now he's focused on replacing Julio Borbon in center for the Vols.

Davis bats from the left side and throws right.

A car accident forced him to miss a large chunk of his senior season of high school with whiplash and a minor back injury.

But his numbers as a junior say enough about his power-speed potential.

Davis hit .444 with 12 home runs, five doubles, a triple, 34 runs and 34 stolen bases.

He's listed by Rivals.com as one of the top-10 impact freshmen to watch in the nation this season.

"He plays so hard every single day," Raleigh said. "I'm waiting for him to let up a little so I can get on him, but he doesn't really let up.

"He's all-out in every single drill and that's very unusual for a freshman as far as the work ethic aspect."

That's just pride as far as Davis is concerned.

"Basically, I just try to hustle and that's a big part of my game," he said. "A lot of scouts when I was in high school picked up on that. They would all say 'I like the way you play and I like the way you hustle.'

"I like to keep that same mentality and approach going all the time."

UT sophomore catcher Yan Gomes has seen Davis go at it firsthand.

They were summer baseball teammates for the Florida Bombers a few years ago in high school.

"We got to know each other really well and when I came up here I kept telling him we were interested in having him up here," Gomes said. "He's an intense kid. Get ready for a lot of surprises.

"He has a lot of raw power and a lot of speed so he can track some balls down like Julio did last year. Keep an eye on him."

Fans get their first chance to see Davis and the new-look Vols during a three-game season-opening series Feb. 22-24 at Lindsey Nelson Stadium against Morehead State.

"I just want to be a part of helping the team get back on top and getting this program back to where it needs to be," Davis said. "I'm just anxious to get out there and be able to play."

© 2008, Knoxville News Sentinel Co.