Keep Calm and Throw Strikes

Well we can start freaking out now and give up on the season because we lost 2/3 in Mobile. Or we can put things in perspective and have an open mind about the rest of the games to be played.

So far Arkansas has done exactly what we surmised. They have hit better (.371) than any other team in the SEC, and are the only team in the conference to register at least 10 hits and to score at least 5 runs in all of their games.

The Hogs have the fourth most homeruns (8) in the league and, with the exception of a four-error inning, they have played great defense.

The struggles have come in the pitching department and especially detrimental in the bullpen. In 53 innings the Hogs have 61 strikeouts, a good number. They also have given up 50 hits and 30 free passes which is cause for concern. Walks and hits per inning (WHIP) is a statistic next to ERA in importance as you can probably tell when thinking about it. 1.00 and lower are considered elite WHIP numbers. I can do simple math and Arkansas' is 1.51.

This past weekend relief pitchers allowed four-run and nine-run innings. While it’s understandable for Freshmen such as Kyle Pate and Jonah Patten to struggle early, Senior returning closer Jacob Stone had an inexplicable outing-to-forget against Maryland. He will have show grit and bounce back if this team is going to have much success going forward.

UCF proved to be the best team of the weekend, finishing undefeated. Arkansas can chalk that loss up to just getting beat. The loss to Maryland was much harder to swallow. With a 6-1 lead after 5 spectacular innings from Freshman Keaton McKinney in his first start, the Hogs went on to give up 12 runs (only 6 earned) on 5 errors.

But Arkansas has not done very well in these types of early away series in which they play a different team each game. Last year they struggled in Berkley, CA, and two years ago in Surprise, AZ they came up completely empty in 4 games. And these games in Mobile were played against much better all around talent.

Especially with a young pitching staff, it is much more important to take the good away from them and learn from the bad than it is to win all of them. Sure, it would boost RPI and maybe even get us into more rankings if we win at least one more of those games. But with a progressive attitude, I choose to look forward to the upcoming games against other top quality opponents and take advantage of opportunities they still have.

Dave Van Horn is letting a lot of people pitch in these first 6 games. In doing so he is getting an idea of whom he can count on and pass on in situations. Let’s also keep in mind the best returning pitcher (Trey Killian) is still at least a couple weeks away from contributing much.

I have been pleasantly surprised with infielder turned pitcher Josh Alberius’ stuff, and Jackson Lowery has logged 5 scoreless innings so far after struggling through last season. With depth being an issue, it will be nice to get more quality innings from these two, as well as improvements from Patten and James Teague.

Offensively, Carson Shaddy has gone above and beyond what anyone may have expected. Van Horn sang his praises all winter, but seeing is believing in the baseball world and Shaddy is not disappointing. Bobby Wernes is also a pleasant surprise. After finishing the season among the worst averages last season, he is leading the team with a .474 average and .565 on base percentage.

With essentially everyone hitting through the first two weeks, the only two with slow starts are Andrew Benintendi and Luke Bonfield. These are the two highest touted hitters Arkansas has received the last two years, so I am not terribly worried about slow starts in these cases.

With winter weather hitting Fayetteville already this week, the Hogs are no doubt taking advantage of their indoor facility. But it would be nice to get out in it these next two days for some work as this weekends’ series with Cal is going to be played through some cold and potentially rainy weather.

Be patient, keep watching and keep reading. The Diamond Hogs have been in this situation before and came out of it better and finished the season much stronger.  

Dominant Start for Hogs

Arkansas dominated the opening weekend against North Dakota in impressive all around fashion. The offense scored 36 runs on 48 hits – 18 for extra bases – in three games. It was a full team effort, but Clark Eagan did stand out with 8 hits and 7 RBI. Andrew Benintendi was the lone struggler in the hits department with 2, but was still able to reach base 7 times with 4 walks and a hit by pitch, as well as drive in 3 runs and steal a base.

The Razorbacks were also dominant on the mound, posting a 2.33 ERA and striking out 39 while walking only 10 in 27 innings. Twelve pitchers were used but only four allowed runs. Zach Jackson and Dominic Taccolini both produced dominant starts while Jonah Patten and Cannon Chadwick stood out in relief efforts.

The most impressive statistic of the weekend was the goose egg in the error column for the Hogs. Typically, opening weekends are when nerves surface and the ball is booted around. Being able to practice indoors this season has proven beneficial already, as 12 players combined for a perfect fielding percentage.

Looking forward, Arkansas will travel to Mobile, AL this weekend to take on a trio of undefeated teams (pending mid week games), two of which are ranked. No. 13 Maryland beat Western Kentucky, Canisius and Old Dominion, No. 22 Central Florida swept Siena, and South Alabama won three against New Orleans.

With James Teague struggling in his first start, and there being no mid week games for Arkansas, I could see Dave Van Horn going with either Keaton McKinney or Jonah Patten – both Freshmen – to start one of the games this weekend. McKinney came in to put out the fire and hold North Dakota to one run in 3.1 innings Friday, while Patten struck out 5 in 2 innings of work on Saturday.

That being said, it would also make sense to leave Teague in the rotation to see how he bounces back. He definitely has starter stuff and was cruising Friday until the third inning when he hit a batter and walked two more before giving up a hit.

It was very good to see Michael Bernal back in the lineup on Saturday, proving to be over his knee injury. While the lineup proved to be efficient without him, the depth and skill he brings to the defense is invaluable.

Two other noteworthy performances were by Cullen Gassaway and Chad Spanberger. They both were in the starting lineup for the last game and combined 6 for 10 with a double, triple, and 5 RBI.

Playing a team like North Dakota doesn’t exactly provide the challenge that other teams will. With the huge numbers that were put up, the question now is: are the Hogs that good, or UND that bad? I say, why not both?

The Razorbacks are definitely on the right track, winning in impressive fashion over a weak opponent. This weekend, however, will test their metal against much tougher opponents in all three games.

Season Preview 2015

This Friday, Arkansas will embark on another journey through one of their toughest schedules I have seen them play. Head coach Dave Van Horn expressed his frustrations last season when he lost RPI points for beating teams that were so poor.

The SEC is atop the rankings again this season, so there is no surprise that the conference schedule will prove to be difficult. However, the non conference schedule brings some talent to Baum Stadium and takes Arkansas on the road to face some challenges.

The Razorbacks were tripped up early last year in California, losing two games to Cal. They also lost to Gonzaga two years ago in Arizona. These are two teams which they will play a total of 6 games against this year at home. They will also play Maryland (in Mobile) who was only one win away from the College World Series (CWS) last year.

Other notable opponents are South Alabama (who won two out of three at Arkansas last year), Loyola Marymount (32-24 last season), Central Florida (36-23), SE Missouri St. (37-20), and Memphis (who beat Ole Miss and Miss. St.). The Hogs will also get to play in TD Ameritrade Park, where the CWS is played, against Creighton.

I have Arkansas going 40-16 in the regular season and 17-13 in the SEC with home series losses to Mississippi State and Tennessee and road wins at Auburn and Alabama. Player of the year will be Andrew Benintendi, Pitcher of the year will be Zack Jackson, and new comer of the year will be Luke Bonfield.

While watching a practice and scrimmage last Saturday, I wrote some notes about things I thought I might like to add to a blog. I would like to share some things I took away from that day and other practices I have seen, as well as give a little preview of the team and season. First of all I took away a bad sunburn on my face. But I wasn’t even mad. It’s February!

Watching infield outfield drills I got to see the arm strengths of the outfielders. I was very impressed with Fr. Chad Spanberger’s arm strength. He is listed as a catcher but showed that he needs some work back there during scrimmaging. From what I have read his bat will require playing time in the coming years. R-Jr. Tyler Spoon showed a plus and accurate arm in right while So. Andrew Benintendi has gained a lot of muscle mass and improved arm strength in center.

Jr. Bobby Wernes continued to flash the leather at third base. His ability to pick the ball off the ground will come in handy at the hot corner. Jr. Rick Nomura has very quick hands at second base. At 5’9”, 175 he is more of a slap hitter but his speed will stretch some singles into doubles, and his veteran play will run us into some games.

So. Clark Eagan was back at first base after nursing a sore shoulder. He will be a mainstay at the leadoff spot this season and hopefully pick up where he left off last year hitting .301.

The first scrimmage I watched seemed like head coach Van Horn had his starting roster on one team. The players mentioned above were joined by R-Jr. Brett McAfee at short, who will be the sure starter as long as R-Jr. Mike Bernal is out with a knee injury. Sr. Joe Serrano took his spot in left field while Fr. Luke Bonfield filled the DH spot. Junor Tucker Pennell was catching which made me think he will be starting day one. But in subsequent scrimmages that I have seen since then R-Fr. Carson Shaddy and So. Alex Gosser have split time with the ones.

The best news I have indicates that Jr. Trey Killian is coming along well in his recovery. As I arrived late to one of the scrimmages he was running foul poles and the only others that ran that day were pitchers who had actually pitched in the scrimmage. As the ace of the rotation I think it is imperative to have him pitching this season if they are going to go far into post season.

 Other than those mentioned already, I have a few names I would like to mention that I believe will contribute this season and for seasons to come. Sophomores Dominic Taccolini, Zack Jackson, and James Teague are right handed pitchers that have the stuff it takes to start in the SEC. With various amounts of experience under their bills, Dave Jorn will lean heavily on them to account for the majority of innings pitched over the next 2-3 years. 

Fr. Keaton McKinney is the prototypical starting pitcher. He has the size, velocity, and hype coming into this season as a top major league prospect out of high school. I can see him starting mid week games to gain experience and jump into the weekend mix when needed. He is the future of our pitching staff.

Sr. Jacob stone will resume the closer role and will keep hitters off balance with his side-to-sub arm delivery. R-Fr. Parker Sanburn has impressed me in the few innings I have seen him pitch, and Fr. Jonah Patten could be this year’s Zack Jackson of last season. Fr. Kyle Pate is the lone left handed pitcher on the squad that looks to make a difference this season.

As I mentioned, Bernal is down with a knee and that has allowed others to step up and get reps in the infield. This is the deepest offensive team Van Horn possibly has ever had and that is most evident in the infield depth. Jr. Max Hogan brings veteran leadership and a quality bat to the bench. I would not be surprised to see him work his way into the every day lineup. 

I am big on Fr. Blake Wiggins, although as of now there isn’t a place for him. He plays both corner infield positions and also boasts a large bat. Jr. Cullen Gassaway looks the part of a power hitter with his large, thick frame. He, Wiggins, and Jr. Matt Campbell all transferred in this year and will contribute to what I believe is the best bench in the nation.

I alluded a little to the catching position earlier, but I lean more towards Pennell starting over Gosser. He has more experience at the position in college baseball and has shown in the practices I have seen that he can defend the position at a high level.

Sr. K.J. Wilkerson has been wearing a wrist brace during the last couple practices I have seen but once healthy could provide a spark in the DH or pinch hitting roles.

Other than noting who is playing where and how they are doing, I also took notes on random things that stood out to me. 

Assistant coach Tony Vitello was the one hitting infield/outfield. When infielders started turning double plays I noticed that after making the play and the first baseman had thrown to the catcher, someone would yell "two!" and the catcher would throw down to second where another command was yelled out to "cut four!" or "three!" This is to work on making quick decisions and executing when something unexpected happens. This was most unexpected by Van Horn as he immediately yelled at the players that they were not supposed to do this until the second round of double plays. Vitello then turned and apologized, explaining that he had jumped the gun and told players to do it.

There were many fans in the stands for a practice and at one point Vitello looked up behind the dugout at someone he knew and with a straight face and stern voice said "this is a closed practice, you gotta go", then turned and walked off. It took me a second to figure out he was kidding and it made a few people in the area look around as if to say "was he serious?"

In normal practices players go searching through the bleachers after foul balls to bring them back to practice with. During the scrimmage one such ball was hit and a player started after it until Van Horn called for him to leave it. It was understood that he knew plenty of kids were in attendance and would be thrilled to go home with a ball.

Bonfield was batting and hit a ground ball to the left side and noticeably tried running faster than normal to beat it out, but failed. When returning to the dugout Vitello stopped him to tell him to "stay in your stride, you'll be safe or out, don't try to run faster than you are". That was great advice. That will save him from many pulled muscles and potentially falling flat on his face if he listens.

I cannot say enough how much bigger Benintendi is, especially in his upper body. He was unable to play summer ball due to injury so he was able to spend a lot of time in the weight room. While it looks like he will have more power in his swing, he has not lost any speed that his small frame showed last year. On a well hit line drive to left center field, Benny ran the ball down from straight away center just before running into the wall. While he may not have the strong arm that Baum has seen in center in recent years, he will be able to make as many tough plays with the glove.

Thank you for reading and please post comments of questions or suggestions you have for me and my blog.

New to the Scene in 2015

Each college baseball season brings new rosters, new rankings, and new feelings of hope for teams across the country. This 2015 season brings an even greater list of reasons to be excited about this great game. The baseball has changed, the Southeastern Conference is going to be televised, and, for the Razorbacks, the newly constructed Fowler indoor practice facility is being utilized.

In 2009 college baseball banned composite bats and we saw an increase of .10 homeruns per game (.95 HR/g). Two years later college baseball changed to a new BBCOR bat and in the 4 years of using them there has been a 0.6 homerun per game (.35 HR/g) drop. This is the lowest average since 1970 when balls were being hit out at a pace of .40 per game.

What’s the big deal, right? I mean after all we are talking less than a homerun being hit per game anyway. How can this possibly matter so much?

Let’s say on average 50 games are played in a season (this varies by team). Last year, based on that number of games, an average of 17.5 homeruns were hit per team all season in college baseball. Compare that to 47.5 in 2009 and it is easy to see why your common fan who wants to see runs scored is no longer interested in the game and the ticket office is taking a hit.

But not just home runs are going to fall off when deadening a bat. Line drives in the gap are weak flares that the outfielder can outrun; there goes a 2 run double. Infielders are able to reach more soft ground balls in the hole; averages are going down. Runs-per-game has dropped from 7 to 5 and batting averages from .305 to .270. This is nation wide. It changes so many phases of a game when hitters are swinging bats that hit more like there is a sponge around the barrel.

Pitchers have loved it, though, as ERA has gone from 6.00 to 4.25. However, I’m sure the lack of run support has not been appreciated.

These fun facts have completely changed the game and completely changed the way many coaches (including Dave Van Horn) have recruited. There has been more emphasis on recruiting pitching, the contact hitter, defense, and speed. In the past 3 years no team has pitched better than Arkansas. They have a nation low cumulative 2.47 ERA over the last 3 years and have been the only team to finish in the top 15 in ERA in each year.

So what is a new ball going to do?

The new balls have two distinct features that are going to work in the hitter’s favor. First, the ball has flatter seams. Raised seams allow the pitcher to grip and spin a ball better, creating more movement on the pitch to deceive the hitter. With flatter seams, this ball will be troublesome to the average pitcher while the good pitchers will still be able to make the ball do whatever they want. This will cause more pitchers to make mistakes to hitters and more solid contact to be made. Second, the ball is wound tighter and, therefore, harder. The harder the ball is, the harder it will come off the bat. In the major leagues they used the hardest, most tightly wound balls there are. That is why a wood bat has the effect it does on their baseballs.

The new college ball will even the playing field after a 4 year spell in which much less potent bats have been the demise of offenses across the board. In short, the game should become more like the way common fans want it to be, while not going over the top for the more knowledgeable fan.

When the SEC Network came to life I was unsure what exactly that meant for less popular sports. It has turned out to be a very impressive, broad network in which you can even watch low revenue sports such as volleyball and gymnastics. When the baseball television schedule was released I was very surprised to see that all but 1 game is now being televised.

As someone who will miss being present for opening weekend for the first time since 2004, I am very fortunate that the SEC Network exists. I am slightly worried, however, that putting games on TV will keep fans from consistently going to the games, and diminish the impressive and entertaining crowds that have become so common at Baum.

I couldn’t count on all my fingers and toes how any times I have heard Van Horn say in a past press conference that his team “would be able to practice more if we had an indoor facility”. The weather in Fayetteville during the heart of the baseball season is next to none. However, the off-season work that it takes to compete during the season is done in some of the most windy, brutally cold and wintry weather in the region.

The availability of the Fowler indoor facility has been praised to no end by players and coaches alike this off-season, and has even been utilized by former players that are being paid to play the game now.

I have only seen pictures of the facility so far but hope to take a tour soon and report on just how nice and big it really is. It boasts batting cages, pitching mounds, and a full sized, artificial turf diamond in which hitters can hit or defenders can work on drills. The building is a massive structure to see from the outside, which would allude to the ability to work on fly balls as well.

These additions to the game that I love will hopefully enhance the experience that the Arkansas Razorbacks bring each year. I will be in Baum cheering them on as much as possible as they hopefully hit better. But if I cannot make it to any given game at least I will have access to it from afar.

Statistical info was received from http://www.acs.psu.edu/drussell/bats/NCAA-stats.html