Arkansas Baseball Preview: Defending SEC Champions looking to repeat, build in 2022

Arkansas had a season to remember in 2021, ultimately earning the No. 1 national seed in the NCAA baseball tournament, but the Razorbacks’ campaign fell just short of expectations following an upset loss to NC State in the Fayetteville Super Regional. Ultimately, the loss certainly didn’t diminish Arkansas’ accomplishments , as the Razorbacks still managed to win the SEC Tournament and take the conference crown for the first time in program history.

Heading into 2022, Arkansas once again has high hopes. Despite nine players being selected in the MLB Draft (the most in the SEC), the Razorbacks have reloaded and are the second-favorite to win the SEC this season, according to the preseason coaches poll. Arkansas opens up its 2022 season on Friday against Illinois State, and prior to first pitch, On3 spoke with Robert Stewart to preview the upcoming season and set expectations. This interview has been lightly edited for clarity.

Robert Stewart is currently the Managing Editor of The Arkansas Traveler, where he previously served as Sports Editor. Additionally, he has contributed to Rivals’ HawgBeat as a baseball writer, and he is a host of The Diamond Hawgs Podcast.

What would be your projected rotation for Arkansas this season, and who do you think will contribute as a midweek starter?

I think it’s going to end up being Connor Noland, Hagen Smith and Jaxon Wiggins. Those are the three guys that Dave Van Horn has talked about the most.

Connor Noland is up to around 92 miles per hour, and I’ve seen him hit that with the fastball. But he’s also worked with three or four other pitches as well. He was dealing with a lot of injury problems last year, but I think he’s going to be a lot harder to hit this year. From what I’ve heard from everybody on the team, it sounds like he’s ready to step up and play with Peyton Pallette — who’s supposed to be the ace — out for the season after he had Tommy John surgery. So, Noland looks like the Friday starter.

Hagen Smith is the second guy. He is a freshman from Bullard, Texas, and he threw seven no hitters his senior year in high school. Van Horn said that he’s 18, but he throws like he’s 22. They scrimmaged inside last Saturday, so I didn’t get to see him throw, but from what I remember in the fall, he’s a very hard-throwing lefty. If he can eat up as many innings as they want him to as a freshman, then Arkansas is going to be in really good shape.

Then Jaxon Wiggins is the third guy. He’s a sophomore this year, and he started last year as the closer, then transitioned into a starting role. But he really only had a fastball and changeup working. He struggled with command at times, and he had probably more short starts than they were hoping. But it sounds like he added a slider and curveball to his repertoire this season, so if he’s got a better mix of pitches, then I imagine he’s going to have longer outings. He’s been sitting around 95 miles per hour on his fastball, but I think he can get it up to around 99.

For midweek guys, there are a handful of names that Van Horn has thrown out there. A lot of darts to throw at the board. One guy that comes to mind is a righty Will McEntire. He was the only guy in their last scrimmage to throw a one-two-three inning. I remember seeing him two years ago, before COVID hit, he was impressive. Of course, that was early on, and they never got into conference play, so it’s hard to know what to expect there. He’s a name people forget about, but every time I saw him on the mound for Arkansas, he’s impressed me.

Nick Griffin, a lefty redshirt freshman, he’s going to get some time as well. He threw against Arkansas’ gray team in the scrimmage, and the gray team seemed like the soon-to-be starting group. So he struggled a little bit, but I think he worked pretty efficiently considering how loaded Arkansas’ batting order is. He’ll factor into midweek games a lot.

Who will Arkansas rely on out of the bullpen?

There are three guys that Van Horn mentioned as folks that will get a lot of work out of the bullpen. Maybe they’ll even factor in as midweek guys. But one is Mark Adamiak. He’s a righty, and I believe he can get up to 98 with that fastball. I think he’s going to get quite a few bullpen innings. Probably will start a midweek game.

Then there are a couple of lefties, the first of which is Zach Morris. He didn’t get too many innings out of Arkansas’ bullpen last year, but it seems like whenever he came in, he worked pretty effectively. Van Horn said he changed his delivery and he’s more efficient with it now, and he seemed confident in Morris coming out of the bullpen.

Then another lefty who’s been around for a while is Evan Taylor, a senior left-hander. He pitched a couple of short outings last weekend in the scrimmages. He was really effective in doing so, despite working on short rest, so he could come out multiple times on a weekend. I’m sure that if they needed him to start a midweek, he could give them three or four innings.

Moving over to the offensive side, who will Arkansas rely on this season and what might the lineup look like?

I truly believe that everybody from one through nine is going to make an impact in this Arkansas batting order. Dave Van Horn said a few weeks ago that the team is going to be ‘every bit as electric as the last few years,’ so the expectations are high. There’s a lot to look forward to.

To go through them all, you have the catcher, Michael Turner, he’s a transfer from Penn State. Obviously, big shoes to fill after Casey Opitz, who set a really high bar before he was picked last year by the Cubs. Turner hasn’t been catching for too long, but I remember he looked really good from behind the plate from what I’ve seen. Van Horn is calling him the full package because he can really hit, and he said he’s surprised that Turner isn’t in pro ball already.

At first base, you have freshman Peyton Stovall. Probably should have been drafted in the first round of the MLB Draft this year, but he was passed on, and he pulled his name out of the draft as soon as the first round ended and decided to go to Arkansas. He is the most patient freshman hitter I’ve ever seen. He’s been leading off and the other day he hit four different RBI hits in their scrimmage, including one on an 11-pitch at-bat. He’s going to be huge and will be a matchup nightmare for a lot of opposing pitchers.

At second base, you’ve got Robert Moore, and everybody knows what he is: a five-tool player that probably can go in the first round this year. At third base, you have Cayden Wallace, who primarily played right field last year for Arkansas. Wallace’s batting average as a freshman in conference play was around .330, and compare that to Heston Kjerstad’s .322, which was enough to have him picked second overall by Baltimore a couple years ago. So, big expectations for him. At shortstop, you’ve got Jalen Battles. Didn’t have the best of years last year, but he came up clutch when it mattered most. He notched a few hits in the SEC Tournament when Arkansas needed it. Van Horn really thought he was going to go pro, so they’re just happy to have him back. Outstanding defensive shortstop and provides a spark in the batting order.

In the outfield, Arkansas will put Jace Bohrofen in left field, a transfer from Oklahoma. I watched him in a fall scrimmage, and I had a scout from the Padres come up to me and ask me about him. He said to me, ‘That guy can f— play.’ He’s a great left-handed bat. Then, at center field, it sounds like Braydon Webb is the favorite, and Van Horn went so far as to say he’s the best centerfielder he’s ever had, which is crazy to think about. Webb is mostly in there for terrific defense, but he’s nursing a quad issue, so I expect his bat to heat up if he can fully recover. In right field, Arkansas will slot Brady Slavens, a power-hitting lefty that played first base a lot last year. He’s going to be a presence in the middle of this order.

One guy that I think could be an unsung hero for Arkansas is Chris Lanzilli at DH. He is a transfer from Wake Forest and put up some pretty ridiculous number there. I remember the first time I saw him in the fall, I thought, ‘Wow, this dude can absolutely rake.’ He’s another middle-of-the-order guy that you just can’t pitch around if you’re an opponent.

Did Arkansas have any weaknesses that stand out to you?

Well, the weakness right now would be pitching — but it’s not like the potential isn’t there. It certainly is. It’s just that it’s unproven talent. It can’t be overstated how important Kevin Kopps was for the Razorbacks last year, and they don’t have him now. So, you’re going to have to rely on more guys, and that’s generally more risky in college baseball. They’re going to have 14 games before conference play to figure out what they want to do on the mound. I’ve mentioned who I think is going to factor in on the mound, but the truth is, that doesn’t matter until they face live opponents. If I had to pinpoint a weakness right now, it’s pitching, and it’s only because it’s so unproven.

With such high expectations, what would you say is the ceiling for this Arkansas team? Where do you see them finishing in SEC play?

I mean, this is an Arkansas team that is going to be up there with those of the past. No doubt in my mind that they can hang with Mississippi State, Ole Miss, LSU and all of the powerhouses in the SEC West. I don’t think they’re going to go out and win all 10 series like they did last year, but I think they’re certainly going to go out there and compete every weekend. The coaches had Arkansas finishing first in the SEC West, and I think that’s a strong possibility. It’s just going to depend on how they play those two Mississippi series in particular.

They also have Vanderbilt on the schedule this year, and that’s going to be one of the best cross division series of the year. The schedule doesn’t get any easier, and it’s not last year’s team, so I’m hesitant to say that they can repeat as division, conference and conference tournament champions, but they will most certainly be in the hunt.

Who would be your early prediction for Arkansas’ MVP?

I really think it’s going to be Cayden Wallace. He was so important to the team as a freshman last year, so now that he’s a veteran guy — even if it’s only by one year — he is going to take on a bigger role. Third base is obviously a very important position, and they are going to turn to him to fill it, both offensively and defensively. And everybody knows what he can do at the plate. He’s going to get a lot of chances to drive in runs, and he’s going to be an on base machine.

And who would you project as Arkansas’ newcomer of the year?

I’ll give two answers, one transfer and one incoming freshman. The transfer is going to be Chris Lanzilli for me. The other day in the scrimmage, I saw him poke an infield single the other way, and I know he’s equally capable of drilling and extra base hit as well. I don’t know how much he’ll factor in defensively, I know he’ll play third and he can play corner outfield. It’s just tough to get a spot in this defense, but I really think his bat is going to keep him in the lineup.

For freshman, I’d say Peyton Stovall. Like I said, he’s one of the most patient hitters I’ve ever seen. He’s 18 years old and he doesn’t seem like he’s been fazed whatsoever. He’s looked really strong in the intrasquad scrimmage. It’ll be interesting to see how he fares against live pitching, but from what I’ve seen so far, he’s going to be very, very important for Arkansas this year, especially as a leadoff hitter.