Regarding freshman phenoms, Dave Van Horn said he's never coached a dynamic duo like Arkansas Razorbacks third baseman Casey Martin and left fielder Heston Kjerstad.
That covers a lot of teams for a lot of years. Since 1989 Van Horn has head coached Texarkana Community College, Central Missouri State and Northwestern State, from 1998-2002 at Nebraska with two College World Series appearances and now into his 16th Arkansas season with four Razorback trips to Omaha.
Some great freshman hitters played on those two teams but a simultaneous pair like Martin and Kjerstad?
"Not on power, no," Van Horn said Tuesday night after Lonoke native Martin and Kjerstad of Amarillo, Texas, detonated the Missouri State Bears in Arkansas' 11-7 victory at Baum Stadium.
Left-handed hitting cleanup hitter Kjerstad went 3-for-4 with four RBI knocked in via first-inning and sixth-inning singles, a fifth-inning leadoff home run over left and a seventh-inning sacrifice fly.
Leadoff man Martin reached base 4 out of 5 times, including a double and the 3-run home run in the 5-run fifth inning advancing Arkansas from down 7-4 to up 9-7. Martin also drew a walk and was hit by a pitch on his first at-bat and scored Arkansas' first run.
Obviously Tuesday wasn't the only time they've excelled. The Razorbacks, variously ranked second and third in most college baseball polls, stand 28-10 overall and lead the SEC West at 10-5 going into this weekend's 3-game SEC West set at Mississippi State in part because Kjerstad leads them in hitting .373 with nine home runs, 10 doubles and 37 RBI while Martin bats .331 with eight home runs, seven doubles and 32 RBI.
"We've had a couple when I was at Nebraska that could really run," Van Horn said. "And they both could hit. One of them ended up playing in the big leagues. One of them would've but he blew his knee out three times. But to have two guys that are dynamic like that, that bring so much to a lineup as young as they are... Martin's got the speed, but he also has power. Kjerstad is such a threat, and he uses the whole ballpark to hit."
And they've been consistent, unless you call tailing off from their near-impossible hitting .400 early pace a "slump" which Van Horn certainly does not.
"I guess what's been fun to watch is that they really haven't gone into that severe slump," Van Horn said. "Even when you start to think, 'Oh there goes the freshman, he's starting to fade a little bit,' bang, they'll have a good day and bounce back. They've both done a nice job mentally of hanging in there because this is a tough league. It can beat you up a little bit."
Kjerstad showed so much in fall ball and the preseason practices that he's mostly hit third or cleanup.
Martin has batted all over the lineup but lately has claimed the leadoff spot utilizing his fastest-on-the-team speed.
"I just put him there a few games back," Van Horn said post Missouri State. "He fits the profile anyway, at least with the speed, and he's got power obviously. I think he's done a tremendous job. Obviously tonight he had a great night. He's just a threat. I like him there."
It might seem easy to say Kjerstad and Martin lead these Razorbacks, but you'd get an earful of rebuttal from the rookies themselves as they look to seniors like second baseman Carson Shaddy, designated hitter Luke Bonfield and junior veteran starters like catcher Grant Koch, right fielder Eric Cole and shortstop Jax Biggers.
"One thing that helped me out a lot was just being able to be around guys that have had hundreds of at-bats in the SEC," Kjerstad said. "They all bring important information to help me out and everyone else in the lineup."
Fifth-year senior Shaddy has been especially helpful, Martin said as an advisor and hitter, .364 with nine home runs and 29 RBI.
"A lot of the stuff Shaddy has been telling me," Martin said, "like to drive through the middle and basically tell myself what kind of player I am before I get into the box, that has really helped. It kind of shows what type of leader he is on this team."
Sports on 04/19/2018