Arkansas Baseball: 2026 Roster

By: Randall Slifer

Folks, the Metal Bats are back! Arkansas Baseball kicks off the season with the Shriners Children’s College Showdown starting February 13^th. Dave Van Horn and the Arkansas Razorbacks are starting the preseason again in the top 10, looking for their first national championship. There was some serious turnover, including players Gage Wood, Zach Root, Charles Davalan, and especially, Wehiwa Aloy. Dave Van Horn always does a great job in the portal, so let’s take a look at this potential starting lineup for the 2026 Arkansas Baseball squad.

Outfielders

Left Field – Kuhio Aloy

Kuhio Aloy, brother of Wehiwa, had a very impressive season as a Razorback his sophomore year. As the designated hitter, Aloy batted .317 with 77 total hits, bringing in a team high 70 RBI’s in the regular season. He will be heading to the field to contribute on defense, and Dave Van Horn is expecting him to up his game this year, especially in the postseason. During the postseason, Kuhio Aloy went 6-34 with only 1 homerun. Kuhio Aloy will look to improve his game on both offense and defense, helping this team get back to Omaha.

Centerfield – Maika Niu

Maika Niu is a prominent transfer portal player that Dave Van Horn picked up this offseason. Maika Niu is a right-hander coming from Marshall who batted .276 with 15 home runs and 52 RBI’s on 67 hits. He started a little slow in the 2025 season, but finished strong, going .322 and 11 homeruns in his final 13 games. After the Marshall season, he dominated the Cape Cod Baseball League and was named its MVP. Arkansas got a preview of Niu earlier this month, where he cranked a 462-foot homerun at Baum-Walker Stadium. Maika Niu needs to be a key component in the outfield and at the plate for Arkansas Baseball’s success.

Right Field – Zach Stewart

Zach Stewart is another important transfer portal player Dave Van Horn picked up this year. The lefty coming from Missouri State, Stewart, posted a .269 batting average with 11 home runs and 31 RBIs in 2025. Stewart’s breakout year came in 2024, when he hit .300 and 21 home runs. Stewart bats left, and throws right, and should immediately contribute as Arkansas had to replace its entire outfield.

Infielders

1^st Base – Reese Robinett

Reese Robinett is entering his 3^rd year as a Razorback and has improved each year here in Fayetteville. Last year, Robinett played in 32 games and started 18. He batted .260 with 19 hits and 3 home runs on 73 appearances. He is a key 1^st baseman, accounting for only 2 errors defensively, and his bat should improve in the 2026 season.

2^nd Base – Camden Kozeal

Camden Kozeal is entering his 2^nd year with Arkansas after transferring from Vanderbilt. Camden had a fantastic year, and the hope is that he can continue his success in the 2026 season. He batted a whopping .333 with 77 hits and was 3^rd in RBIs with 62. Kozeal will be an integral part of the regular season and another player who will need to make a postseason impact. Kozeal went 9-30 with only 1 RBI in the postseason. Some more impactful postseason hits are the key for Kozeal.

Shortstop – Nolan Souza

Nolan Souza will be looking to take a big step at shortstop this year in hitting and retaining his defensive prowess. Souza only batted .250 last year, but contributed to bigger hits throughout the year. Out of 24 hits, Souza had 5 doubles and 4 home runs. He also committed only 2 errors in 2025 while playing 2^nd base. Souza has an opportunity to increase his bat while being a top defenseman for the Arkansas Razorbacks.

3^rd Base – TJ Pompey

TJ Pompey is an intriguing 3^rd baseman who Dave Van Horn believes is just scraping his potential. Pompey is a versatile field player, playing all infield positions (except pitcher and catcher) and some outfield as well. Pompey was having his best start to his sophomore season, batting .348 with 5 homeruns and 15 RBIs in just 19 games played. He took a pitch to the wrist, ending his season. However, Pompey was heavily sought after in the transfer portal, and Arkansas Baseball landed him.

Catcher – Ryder Helfrick

Ryder Helfrick is one of the most polarizing players on the Arkansas Baseball team and in the country. As a catcher, he finished hitting .305 with 15 home runs and 38 RBIs. As a catcher, he only committed 3 errors and 629 plays for a .995 fielding percentage. He threw out 10 runners, all while being dynamite on the offensive side as well. Ryder Helfrick is a key component to getting the Hogs to the National Championship.

Pitching

Cole Gibler

Cole Gibler came in last year as a true freshman and made 20 appearances as a relief pitcher. As a reliever, he posted a 3.99 ERA with 57 strikeouts in 29 innings. Gibler will be moving to the starting rotation this year, and he looks ready. Cole throws his fastball at 95 with a breaking ball and a high-speed changeup. He will be a vital piece, adding solid depth to the pitching staff rather than a top-heavy room.

Colin Fisher

Colin Fisher was able to get some starts as a sophomore with Arkansas Baseball. In 5 starts, Gibler went 3-0 with a 4.62 ERA with over 1 strikeout per inning. Both Gibler and Fisher are left-handed pitchers, with the main starter, Gaeckle, being a right-handed pitcher. Fisher will be moved around the weekend to find the right matchup and ensure Gaeckle has the best opportunity. Fisher and Gibler are very important to this team’s pitching success.

Gabe Gaeckle

Gabe Gaeckle is making his anticipated return this year to Arkansas Baseball. Gaeckle started slowly at the beginning of the year, recovering from a shoulder injury, but the second half of the year was incredible. Gaeckle posted a 4-2 record with a 4.42 ERA and 92 strikeouts in 71 innings. In the postseason. He was electric in the postseason, including the infamous no-hitter with 19 strikeouts. He followed that up with a 10-strikeout, 6-inning relief in the college world series to show he is ready to pitch his best ball in 2026. Gaeckle made it into the preseason all-SEC team this year, and the expectation is that he remains on it.

Is this the year that Dave Van Horn and Arkansas Baseball can get it done? This team has a lot of moving parts, with the players who left at the end of the last year to the draft. Arkansas Baseball will need some time to gel and figure itself out, but it all comes down to the postseason. Arkansas works best at home, so they will need to secure regional and super regionals at home, and they can get that done.

If Niu, Pompey, and Stewart all outperform expectations from the portal, that would be a huge step in the right direction. In addition, Arkansas Baseball needs their veteran presence of Helfrick, Aloy, and Kozeal to get the metal bats cooking in the postseason, while Gaeckle and the starting pitchers can close it out. As always, Go Razorbacks.