Arkansas baseball eyes its 3rd straight trip to the College World Series in 2020
Arkansas baseball eyes its 3rd straight trip to the College World Series in 2020 NCAA.com
CWS HISTORY: B/R: ALL-TIME STARTING 9s: )
MLB: STORE: Former Freshman All-American Christian Franklin appears to be Dom Fletcher’s replacement out in center field. Though Fletcher was a premier defender who took outstanding routes and had great instincts, Franklin is much faster. He also took a step forward with the bat this fall, showing more consistency and hitting the ball with authority. “He’s really taken a step forward with the bat,” Van Horn said of Franklin. “He’s hitting the ball with authority and everything is better with the bat. He’s a great runner and, though he’s likely to be our center fielder, we’ll also look at some other guys like Webb, too.” Two intriguing infielders to watch in the spring include redshirt freshman Zach Gregory and Arizona State transfer Cole Austin. Gregory is a 5-foot-10, 175-pounder, who had a solid summer at the Northwoods League. He has played each day this fall at second base or designated hitter and has impressed from the left side. Meanwhile, Arkansas is Austin’s third destination, and he showed up this fall ready to roll. He hit just .208 with the Sun Devils last season, but Van Horn said he had a productive fall. “Gregory came back this fall wanting to prove something, and he’s one of those guys who really stepped up and impressed,” he said. “Austin is really interesting, I’d say. He had a good fall and I think he could end up being a good one for us.”
CHAMPS
PRESENTED BY Arkansas sure looks like a team ready to make a third-straight trip to the College World Series. The Razorbacks have become an Omaha mainstay during the Dave Van Horn era, and the last two seasons have been special. The Hogs finished as the national runner-up two seasons before not skipping a beat last season with right-hander Isaiah Campbell and others stepping up with the team making yet another trip to Omaha. PEEK AT 2020: Once again, the Hogs fell just short of a national title. But there’s no time for sulking in Fayetteville, as Van Horn’s club looks like a national contender yet again. Sure, there are some question marks. The Hogs might not have that bonafide Friday night ace they had the last two seasons with Campbell and Blaine Knight before that, but they have plenty of options with right-hander Connor Noland and left-hander Patrick Wicklander. Everything else looks to be in outstanding shape for the Hogs. “You know, after the fall, as coaches, we feel great about the depth of our pitching staff. I think it’s one of the deeper staffs we’ve had,” Arkansas coach Dave Van Horn said. “Obviously the big question right now is who is going to step in and take Campbell’s spot? That’s a good question. We’re not sure we have that guy just yet, but I’m also not sure anyone expected Campbell [last fall] to be as good as he was in the spring, so there’s still plenty of time. “It’s really hard to evaluate the offense right now because we had some guys hurt this fall, we took things easy with guys like Casey Opitz and things like that,” he continued. “But if we have everyone healthy and playing, I think our offense will be right where it was last season in terms of production. But again, right now, it’s about finding that No. 1 guy on the pitching staff. We’ll keep running guys out there until we find a fit.” From an injury standpoint, the Hogs will be ready to go in the spring. Casey Martin continues to come back from a hamate bone injury, Matt Goodheart will be ready to roll following an offseason shoulder procedure and highly touted junior college product outfielder Braydon Webb was off to a hot start this fall before hurting his shoulder diving for a ball back in September. None of those injuries are expected to be lingering issues into the 2020 campaign. DECADE'S BEST: There are no guarantees in the always rugged SEC, but the Hogs looks like a team ready to compete with a stout top of the lineup and a multitude of options on the mound. Now, it’s about putting all the pieces together. Let’s check out the Hogs this fall:Position Players
Heston Kjerstad put together yet another outstanding fall for the Razorbacks. He looks like someone ready to be a high first-round draft pick next summer. Kjerstad hit well over .300 this fall and slugged five or six home runs. What’s interesting about Kjerstad, though, is that Arkansas played him at first base 80 percent of the time this fall. It’s not that the Hogs are dead set on moving him to first base, but Van Horn wants to get creative with the positional assignments at time in the spring. He said there’s a chance he plays first. “He did nothing but hit … as usual,” Van Horn said. “I played him at first base about 80 percent of the time, so we can see how he looks in case we decide to put him over there at times. He did fine over there. There are some little mechanical things we can fix, and it’s not overly smooth, but he made every play. He catches the ball really well.” Casey Opitz has been a productive player throughout his Arkansas career, but took a massive step forward as a sophomore last season. In addition to showcasing his talents behind the plate, he also developed into a strong offensive contributor. Opitz only caught about 10 percent of the time this fall as the Hogs were resting him, but Van Horn says his strides in other areas was noticed. For instance, Opitz gained around 15 pounds of muscle after the season until now and is up from around 160 since he arrived in Fayetteville to 198 now. For the record, a scout recently told me Opitz was viewed anywhere from a second-to-fourth rounder for next summer. “We put him in some scrimmages at times here and there,” he said. “He knew he had to get stronger and he’s done that. He looks like a big-time pro guy now. The ball is totally different off his bat right now. Now that he’s gotten his size, he’s hitting for power and there’s no doubt in my mind he’ll catch in the big leagues. He’s just so good back there. That’s the way I feel about him.” "It's something you dream about as a kid, being able to represent your country. It was an honor." - — Razorback Baseball (@RazorbackBSB) Casey Martin has had some bad luck with injuries over the past few months. Van Horn revealed that he played the final few weeks of the season with a shoulder injury before breaking his hamate bone this fall. Though his fall wasn’t filled with opportunities, he showed some strides in some key areas. “He didn’t play much this fall, but he’s had some tough luck. That shoulder was really bothering him at the end of last season,” Van Horn said. “He was having a good fall. He knows that his battle is cutting down on strikeouts and putting the ball in play more often, and he was doing that before he got hurt.” Matt Goodheart didn’t play this fall after having offseason shoulder surgery, but Van Horn said he’ll be ready to go in the spring. Another injured player this fall was Grayson (TX) transfer Braydon Webb. Webb put together an outstanding 2019 campaign in the junior college ranks, hitting .450 with 14 home runs and 66 RBIs. He hurt his shoulder diving for a ball early this fall and didn’t play again. However, Van Horn saw all he needed from the talented outfielder. “He had a great fall when he played and was a really athletic left fielder for us,” he said. “He’s just now getting back from that cracked bone in the back of his shoulder, but he was starting. He’ll start. The way he approaches the game — he kind of has that same type of twitchiness that Casey Martin had.” 2022 College World Series:CWS HISTORY: B/R: ALL-TIME STARTING 9s: )
MLB: STORE: Former Freshman All-American Christian Franklin appears to be Dom Fletcher’s replacement out in center field. Though Fletcher was a premier defender who took outstanding routes and had great instincts, Franklin is much faster. He also took a step forward with the bat this fall, showing more consistency and hitting the ball with authority. “He’s really taken a step forward with the bat,” Van Horn said of Franklin. “He’s hitting the ball with authority and everything is better with the bat. He’s a great runner and, though he’s likely to be our center fielder, we’ll also look at some other guys like Webb, too.” Two intriguing infielders to watch in the spring include redshirt freshman Zach Gregory and Arizona State transfer Cole Austin. Gregory is a 5-foot-10, 175-pounder, who had a solid summer at the Northwoods League. He has played each day this fall at second base or designated hitter and has impressed from the left side. Meanwhile, Arkansas is Austin’s third destination, and he showed up this fall ready to roll. He hit just .208 with the Sun Devils last season, but Van Horn said he had a productive fall. “Gregory came back this fall wanting to prove something, and he’s one of those guys who really stepped up and impressed,” he said. “Austin is really interesting, I’d say. He had a good fall and I think he could end up being a good one for us.”