NFL
By: Randall Slifer
Arkansas Baseball hosts the regionals this weekend for the third time in a row. Dave Van Horn is still seeking a national championship, and Arkansas earned the third seed in the NCAA Baseball Tournament. The teams traveling to Fayetteville are North Dakota State, Creighton, and Kansas. In this double-elimination tournament, Arkansas is the number one seed. Wehiwa Aloy earned SEC Player of the Year, hitting .358 with 18 home runs and 58 RBIs. We ranked #1 defensively in the nation, thanks to our deep roster. Arkansas will start with South Dakota State, which is the fourth seed in our bracket. All three teams are capable of competing, especially 47th-ranked Creighton and 24th-ranked Kansas. Arkansas must come out strong against North Dakota State to get closer to the final game without a loss. The number one priority is to win the first two games to avoid going into the elimination bracket. Once you are in the elimination bracket, you will play a doubleheader on Sunday if you reach the final game. Even if the team coming from the elimination bracket wins Sunday night, they will now have played three games in thirty-six hours. By that time, pitching is bleak, and everyone can become exhausted. To hold true to that testament, let’s discuss North Dakota State and how we can get to the Super Regionals:
North Dakota State won the Summit League Tournament to get an automatic bid to the NCAA Baseball Tournament. North Dakota State was ranked as high as 22nd in the RPI this season. They beat Oral Roberts in the tournament, which has been consistently good over the past five years. North Dakota State has a couple of good hitters who helped them advance throughout the Summit League Tournament, earning a spot in the NCAA Tournament. Jake Schaffner and Davis Hamilton are batting over .300 for the season and are pure hitters instead of home run hitters.
The whole North Dakota State team hit 30 home runs during their season, but they hit a whopping 67 doubles. While North Dakota State is ranked 140th in the RPI, that is only 31 doubles less than 3rd-ranked Arkansas. North Dakota State’s pitching is not too deep, and something Arkansas can exploit on Friday. Nolan Johnson and Logan Knight pitched more innings than any other pitcher by 34 innings. They each have an ERA of over 4.00 and a combined record of 8-11. Both pitchers averaged less than one strikeout per inning. Nolan Johnson will more than likely get the nod for Friday, and he is a good left-handed pitcher.
Arkansas will need to hit his fastball, while not chasing change-ups. Arkansas is better at hitting left-handed pitchers more than they were last year, and that needs to be on point for this matchup. No game is won before the first pitch, and we can only acknowledge their weaknesses. If Arkansas does not put together a strong game against North Dakota State, it will be a tough road for the Razorbacks to reach the Super Regionals.
Arkansas has all the tools to beat North Dakota State and advance to the regionals, thanks to the advantage of being at home. Arkansas’ pitching is much better, and the difference in hitting is significant. Arkansas’ hitters must come out strong early and hold the lead to ensure we can use the least number of pitchers on day one. Arkansas decides to start Aiden Jimenez against South Dakota State on Friday.
It is a great decision by Dave Van Horn as Jimenez is a good pitcher who can get the win without starting one of your top three starting pitchers. Jimenez has a 3.37 ERA and is 4-1. He averages one strikeout per inning and gives up a batting average of only .258. Ideally, Jimenez could pitch through the 6th inning, giving Landon Beidelschies or Ben Bybee a few innings to get under their belt for the rest of the weekend. If Arkansas needs a closer, McEntire will be ready to pitch at the end of the game. Arkansas needs to remain calm and play their style of ball on Friday to start the path to 2-0.
Arkansas Baseball may be the most complete team we have had since hosting regionals the last three years. Last year, our pitching was one-man strong in Hagen Smith, and Arkansas’ hitting was home-run-centric. Arkansas has solid pitching depth that can outlast the majority of teams in the tournament. Our hitting is more balanced than it was in previous years. Arkansas is 14th in overall scoring and 32nd in total hits. The only top-seeded teams ahead of Arkansas in total hits are Tennessee (26th) and Southern Miss (20th).
Arkansas remains 7th in home runs, as its power hitting has not diminished despite adding depth in standard hitting. Add that to being the number-ranked defense, and Arkansas has all the tools to make it to Omaha. FanDuel and DraftKings have Arkansas favored to win the College World Series at a leading +470. Arkansas needs to stay focused and not look ahead, but rather focus on getting the job done first in Fayetteville.
Can Arkansas get to the Super Regionals after this weekend? Reach out to me here or on Twitter/Bluesky @RandallSlifer and let me know your thoughts. Go ‘Backs!
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