Dave Van Horn credits pitching, defense for Arkansas' 2024 success

Arkansas has been one of the SEC’s best teams this season, having the No. 2 seed in Hoover. And when you are good in the SEC, you’re also highly ranked nationally. Dave Van Horn has seen his team be No. 1 at different times this season as the journey to make the College World Series continues.

Winners of the SEC West, Van Horn gave a ton of credit to his pitching staff as to why Arkansas has been elite this season. Yes, there have been some injuries down the stretch but the team’s entire staff has shown out when called upon. Having fewer arms available can deteriorate a season quickly but not the Razorbacks.

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“We can pitch a little bit,” Van Horn said during an in-game interview with SEC Network. “We went through a little bit of a slump the last couple of weekends, had some injuries, had some tired arms.”

It’s hard to not speak highly of your pitchers when Hagen Smith is there. The SEC Pitcher of the Year has been dominant for Arkansas, drawing a lot of statistical comparisons to LSU‘s Paul Skenes from a season ago — not something anybody would say for a long time.

In 14 games started this season, Smith had an ERA of 1.52 in 77 IP. Just 13 earned runs crossed the plate with the Arkansas ace out there. Even more impressive, his K/BB ratio was over 5/1 with 150 total strikeouts and just 29 walks.

Outside of Smith, Van Horn talked about the importance of throwing strikes. Heading into Wednesday’s fifth inning against South Carolina, both of the runs the Gamecocks scored were originally walked. Putting pitches in the zone and getting the ball in play is key for Van Horn, especially with the good defense behind whoever is on the mound.

“We play really good defense for the most part. We don’t make too many mistakes. And for the most part, we throw strikes… The guys show up every day, they play hard, we appreciate their effort.”

Even if Arkansas were to lose a game at some point — whether in the SEC Baseball Tournament or during the NCAA Tournament — Van Horn can rely on a quality pitcher coming out the next day. There’s no better way to respond than a quality start while the bats are given time to heat up.