FAYETTEVILLE -- Dave Van Horn's highly-regarded Arkansas Razorbacks will enter this season with the bulk of the team that led a 19-game turnaround a season ago.
Arkansas' baseball program hosted its annual media day a week ago at Baum Stadium. A number of returnees have Van Horn and many others optimistic about the Hogs' upcoming season.
The Razorbacks have been ranked no lower than No. 6 by the major preseason rankings so far released. They were ranked No. 6 by Perfect Game, No. 4 by Baseball America, No. 4 by D1Baseball.com and No. 3 by Collegiate Baseball, the program's highest preseason ranking since 2013.
Returning ace Blaine Knight is a major factor for the early plaudits. The junior right-hander was 8-4 with a 3.28 ERA as a sophomore and was named a Louisville Slugger Preseason Third Team All-American by Collegiate Baseball Magazine.
"If you look around the league, it is hard to get a guy like that back," Van Horn said. "That is a good sign. He wanted to come back. He was only a sophomore. It's not like we got a senior back who turned down a ton of money.'
Van Horn said Knight will lead Arkansas' pitching staff. His age made him draft-eligible last year.
"When you look back at it, I wish we could have gotten (Andrew) Benintendi back for his junior year," Van Horn said. "That would have been special."
Junior catcher Grant Koch became the second All-American on the team when he was named a Preseason Third Team All-American by D1Baseball.com. Koch was second on the team with 63 starts out of Arkansas' 64 games a season ago.
Koch hit .264 with a career-best 13 home runs and 42 RBIs. His home run total was the seventh most in the conference, most among catchers and most by a Razorback catcher in Van Horn's tenure. Van Horn said Koch looks even stronger as the ball is jumping off his bat.
"He just looks like a veteran to me," Van Horn said. "He is a guy who is solid and does not get rattled. We hope to take a little bit better care of him, physically, as far as giving him a couple of innings off here and there of a day off. He will fight me on it, because that is the way he is."
The two All-Americans were among a number of returnees who already staked their claims in starting positions.
Van Horn and the media had few questions about team leaders Jax Biggers and Luke Bonfield. Biggers led the team with a .338 average in 62 starts as the team's shortstop.
Bonfield hit .294 with nine home runs and 49 runs batted in, second-most on the team, as a junior designated hitter and outfielder. He was the only Razorback to play in all 64 games a season ago.
Arkansas will miss the rare power of Chad Spanberger, who hit .305 and 20 home runs with 67 RBI before he was drafted in the sixth round by the Colorado Rockies. His void is expected to be filled by the likes of Koch, Bonfield and Dominic Fletcher, the team's starting center fielder.
Fletcher hit 12 home runs with 37 RBI and a .291 average in 59 games and 56 starts as a freshman.
"A lot of times the freshman that play a lot, their sophomore year is just OK," Van Horn said. "He is a different kid. He had a good sophomore year following his freshman year, but it wasn't great.
"He didn't hit for the average he wanted to; he hit 12 home runs. But I wouldn't be surprised if he hits a lot of home runs and hits a lot of doubles. He learned how to go the other way a little bit. He is going to have to take some walks. They are going to pitch around him a little bit."
Eric Cole will return to start in right field after hitting .282 as a sophomore and redshirt senior Carson Shaddy returns at second base. Van Horn said Shaddy worked hard to fend off competition from younger players. He led the team with a .332 average two years ago and batted .279 with eight home runs last season.
Van Horn said sophomore Jack Kenley is the leader to start at third base. The coach compared Kenley to former Razorback Bobby Wernes, who Van Horn said was the best defensive third baseman he has ever coached. Kenley played shortstop throughout the fall and is likely to take over at the spot next season once Biggers goes pro, the coach said.
"I am always talking to these guys about defense," Van Horn said. "We feel like we are going to hit and we have depth, but if you want to win a championship, you've got to play defense. There's some guys that really like to hit. They need to really get that glove going a little bit."
Van Horn said he will have a difficult task of finding enough positions for his talented team. Do-everything sophomore Evan Lee batted .333 in 17 games and also had 15 appearances on the mound in his freshman season. Van Horn said he will definitely pitch, but can also play first base and left field.
Senior Jared Gates batted .246 in 37 games last season, while sophomore Jordan McFarland hit .271 in 29 games. Van Horn said redshirt junior Hunter Wilson, .310 in 14 games, is a candidate to play third base, as are true freshmen Casey Martin and Easton Murrell. Freshman Heston Kjerstad is expected to compete for time in left field.
"There's not enough spots right now," Van Horn said. "Somebody is not going to get to play right away. Again, I have not had that luxury since I have been here. It is just going to keep them battling."
Cole Turney is expected to compete for a spot in the lineup as a freshman. Van Horn said the staff did not expect Turney to make it to campus when he committed as a sophomore as the top hitter in Texas.
Van Horn said Turney was expected to be a first-round draft pick out of high school, but he slid to the 34th round after battling injuries. He said the freshman had an injury to his ankle in the fall, but his limited batting work has been impressive.
"When you hit a ball off of the middle of the batter's eye as a freshman in your first BP round, it is pretty impressive," Van Horn said. "He's got Chad Spanberger power-plus."
The pitching staff combined for a 3.61 team ERA and a school-record 619 strikeouts, but will be bolstered by several returning from injury. Redshirt junior Keaton McKinney and redshirt sophomore Cody Scroggins are expected to follow Knight in the rotation after both suffered season-ending injuries a year ago.
"I would say, if they stay healthy, there is no doubt," Van Horn said.
McKinney was 6-2 with a 3.21 ERA in 87 innings as a freshman. He was 1-5 with an ERA of 6.66 in 52 innings two years ago on the 26-29 squad.
"Nobody deserves it more than McKinney," Van Horn said. "That guy has worked incredibly hard and I am just excited to see what he can do."
Redshirt sophomore Isaiah Campbell was 3-1 with a 3.69 ERA in 31.2 innings two years ago before missing almost all of last season. Matt Cronin was 3-1 with a 2.00 ERA in 18 innings as a freshman, junior Jake Reindl was 4-1 with a 2.39 ERA in 50.2 innings and junior left-hander Kacey Murphy returns after 5-1 with a 3.65 ERA in 49.1 innings. Van Horn said Murphy has increased his velocity after experiencing some tightness in his back.
"Really what wins is he throws strikes and he can pitch to his glove side," Van Horn said. "That means right into the right-handed hitters. I see him having a big role, a big year and I think he is definitely a pro prospect."
Sports on 02/03/2018