Category: Arkansas baseball

Brady Tygart’s specialty brings success to Arkansas’ bullpen

This highlight reel of Brady Tygart’s breaking balls from Rob Friedman will bring a smile to your face.

Freshman [autotag]Brady Tygart[/autotag] has not been at Arkansas long enough to get his spikes muddy, but he is already turning into a valuable member of the Arkansas bullpen.

In eight appearances and 15 innings of work, the freshman from Hernando, Miss. has struck out a total of 22 batters. His best, and longest, outing came in the Razorbacks’ most recent series against Mississippi State, where he struck out a career-high seven batters in 3.2 innings of work, allowing only one hit and one walk in Arkansas’ 5-3 loss to Tygart’s home-state team.

Most of his strikeouts have been earned by his ability to make opposing batters look silly in the box thanks to his breaking pitches. Tygart has tossed pitches that have spin rates of 3,100 RPM, which makes it nearly impossible to make contact. Rob Friedman, also known as “Pitching Ninja” on Twitter, has become a fan of Tygart this season and looks to showcase his talents at every opportunity given.

On Sunday, Friedman pieced together highlights of Tygart’s outing against Mississippi State. Here’s a 0:46 highlight of Tygart’s breaking pitches, courtesy of “the pitching ninja” Rob Friedman. Enjoy.

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Arkansas falls in finale Mississippi State, takes series, anyway

Mississippi State salvages one win Sunday as Arkansas takes series against Bulldogs.

Mississippi State escaped with one win, anyway.

Arkansas won Friday and Saturday against the Bulldogs, but MSU plated a pair of runs in the 12th to take the series finale on Sunday, 5-3

Luke Hancock and Logan Tanner had back-to-back RBI singles in the 12th to provide Mississippi State with the winning runs. Before that, all three of the Bulldogs’ runs came on solo homers. Hancock and Tanner each had one and RJ Yeager added another.

Second-ranked Arkansas had a chance to win it in the bottom of the ninth when the Diamond Hogs loaded the bases with one out. But [autotag]Peyton Stovall[/autotag] and [autotag]Michael Turner[/autotag] struck out on back-to-back at-bats, sending the game to extra innings.

Brayden Webb was the only Diamond Hogs player with more than a hit. He went 2 for 3 with a walk and a home run.

[autotag]Jaxon Wiggins[/autotag] worked five innings for the Razorbacks, striking out four and giving up just two runs. Mississippi State scored both of its runs off Kole Ramage, who took the loss.

Arkansas is back at it Tuesday when it hosts Central Arkansas for a one-off series at Baum-Walker Stadium.

Arkansas baseball vs Mississippi State: How to watch, stream, listen to Game 3 on Sunday

The Diamond Hogs are the No. 2 team in the country and could bump a spot higher with a sweep.

Arkansas baseball is looking for another sweep.

The Diamond Hogs will get an opportunity to send Mississippi State back to Starkville winless when the teams get underway in Game 3 of the series on Sunday from Baum-Walker Stadium at 2 p.m. Both previous games have seen Arkansas win in blowouts.

Jalen Battles’ two homers and Connor Noland’s excellent start propelled Arkansas in the first game, 8-1. In Game 2 on Saturday, the Diamond Hogs blasted four home runs and ran away, 12-5.

Sophomore right-hander [autotag]Jaxon Wiggins[/autotag] will go for Arkansas in the finale.

The two teams have played to a series sweep every regular-season meeting since 2015. Arkansas had won the series in odd-numbered years while MSU had won in even-numbered years, until 2022.

Diamond Hogs blast four home runs, take series from Mississippi State

Arkansas’ bats came alive in taking Game 2 from Mississippi State on Saturday. The Diamond Hogs go for a sweep Sunday.

Every Arkansas and Mississippi State baseball series since 2015 has resulted in a sweep. The 2022 series may be no different.

Arkansas won Game 2 between the two schools on Saturday night from Baum-Walker Stadium, 12-5, behind the strength of four home runs. The Diamond Hogs will go for the sweep Sunday at 2 p.m.

Arkansas scored runs in five straight innings, including four runs in the second and another four in the third. [autotag]Brady Slavens[/autotag] hit a two-run blast in the third. [autotag]Chris Lanzilli[/autotag] hit a solo shot in the fourth and [autotag]Robert Moore[/autotag] followed on the next at-bat with one of his own. [autotag]Zack Gregory[/autotag] sent the last ball over the fence in the fifth.

Slavens knocked in three runs total, going 2 for 4 with a double, a walk and his homer. He was only bested by [autotag]Cayden Wallace[/autotag], who went 2 of 5 with four RBI on a two-run double and a two-run single.

Mississippi State opened the scoring when [autotag]Hagen Smith[/autotag] walked the first three batters of the game and the Bulldogs scored on a sacrifice fly. Smith settled after that, though, ultimately going six innings while not allowing any more walks, striking out seven and giving up three runs.

Arkansas baseball vs Mississippi State: How to watch, stream, listen to Game 2 on Saturday

Arkansas and Mississippi State have swept each other every year back to 2015. The Diamond Hogs won this series opener Friday.

The nation’s No. 2 team in the country had little trouble with the defending national champions in the series opener. Mississippi State will seek to tie its series with Arkansas on Saturday at 6:30 p.m.

Connor Noland worked seven innings, striking out six Bulldogs hitters and Jalen Battles knocked two home runs in the Diamond Hogs 8-1 win on Friday.

Friday’s win boasts well for the Diamond Hogs as the last time Arkansas and Mississippi State met and one team didn’t sweep the other was in 2015. Ever since that year, the Razorbacks have swept the series in odd-numbered years and the Bulldogs had swept in even-numbered years, though 2022 broke that streak on Friday.

Arkansas will throw left-handed freshman [autotag]Hagen Smith[/autotag] on Saturday. He will enter 4-1 with a 3.45 earned-run average in six starts.

Arkansas routs Mississippi State in series opener

A six-run second inning lifted Arkansas to an easy win over Mississippi State on Friday.

[autotag]Jalen Battles[/autotag] homered twice and [autotag]Connor Noland[/autotag] worked seven innings in Arkansas’ 8-1 win over Mississippi State in the teams’ series opener on Friday night from Baum-Walker Stadium.

The win kept the Diamond Hogs (20-4, 6-1 in SEC) two games ahead of second-place Texas A&M in the SEC West and one game behind unbeaten Tennessee in the overall conference table.

Arkansas pounced early, scoring six runs in the second inning to put away Mississippi State. Five straight Hogs batters reached in the inning with two outs. [autotag]Robert Moore[/autotag] smacked a two-run triple and Battles hit a two-run home run to highlight the frame.

On the other side, Noland continued his sharpness. The senior moved to 4-1 on the season after allowing just four Bulldogs hits and striking out six in his seven innings.

[autotag]Cayden Wallace[/autotag] joined Battles as the only other Razorbacks batter to collect two knocks, one of which was a double.

The two teams play Game 2 from Fayetteville at 6:30 p.m. Saturday.

Arkansas vs. Little Rock: Game preview, how to watch and listen to Wednesday’s game

The No. 2 Razorbacks completed a major comeback on Tuesday against Little Rock. Arkansas will go for a midweek series win Wednesday at 4 p.m.

The No. 2 Arkansas Razorbacks host the Little Rock Trojans on Wednesday, and if you’re wondering how you can watch the action live, you’ve come to the right place.

The No. 2 Arkansas Razorbacks overcame a 6-0 deficit prior to the bottom of the 3rd inning to take game one of the two-game midweek set with Little Rock on Tuesday, defeating the Trojans 16-8 at Baum-Walker Stadium.

Arkansas began chipping away at the Trojan lead in the bottom half of the 3rd inning when [autotag]Robert Moore[/autotag] and [autotag]Chris Lanzill[/autotag]i each collected an RBI on a double to left and a single to center respectively to cut the Little Rock lead to 6-2 heading to the 4th inning.

Little Rock’s Canyon McWilliams aided his team by coming off of the bench to hit a solo home run in the top of the 5th inning to expand the Trojans’ lead to 7-2. The Razorbacks responded by scoring nine runs over the next two innings to head into the 7th inning with a comfortable 11-7 lead.

[autotag]Cayden Wallace[/autotag], [autotag]Jaden Battles[/autotag], and [autotag]Drake Varnado[/autotag] contributed to the five-run 5th inning with their bats while Kendall Diggs was able to secure an RBI by reaching base on a fielder’s choice. Wallace led off the inning by hitting his 4th home run over the right center-field fence, while Battles and Varnado each grabbed RBI on singles.

Battles and Varnado would contribute to the four-run 6th inning as well by picking up an RBI each. Battles on a single to left field and Varnado on a sacrifice fly to score Moore. The two key bats of the game, [autotag]Braydon Webb[/autotag] and [autotag]Michael Turner[/autotag], scored their first runs of the game in back-to-back at-bats. Webb singled to left field to advance Wallace to 3rd base, who would then score on an error by Little Rock to extend the Razorback lead to 12-7. Webb would later score on an RBI double by Turner.

For safe measure, Arkansas would score five insurance runs in the bottom of the 8th on two swings of the bat. After beginning the inning on two-straight walks, freshman [autotag]Kendall Diggs[/autotag] hit his first career homerun as a Razorback to give Arkansas the 14-7 lead. Varnado would get hit by a pitch in the next at-bat, and would score two batters later when Braydon Webb hit his now team-leading 5th home run of the season, expanding the lead to 16-7.

Little Rock’s Miguel Soto cut into the Razorback lead in the top of the 9th inning on an RBI double, but the Trojans could not storm back, giving Arkansas their 19th win of the season.

Wednesday, the Razorbacks and Trojans will conclude their midweek series. First pitch from Baum-Walker Stadium is set for 4 p.m.

Van Horn’s 300th SEC win is series clincher over Missouri

Arkansas won their 12th straight SEC series by defeating Missouri on Sunday. The win was sentimental for Razorback fans, as Dave Van Horn claimed his 300th SEC win as head coach.

The No. 4 Arkansas Razorbacks won their second consecutive conference series to open league play on Sunday, defeating Missouri, 6-4, winning two of the three-game series to move to 18-4, 5-1 in SEC play.

The win keeps Arkansas in the driver’s seat of the SEC West, as they hold on to a two-game lead over Auburn, Texas A&M, LSU, and Mississippi State through two SEC series weekends. Sunday’s win over Missouri holds sentimental value for Razorback fans, as the leader of their program grabbed his 300th SEC win.

Since Dave Van Horn took over his alma mater’s baseball program in 2003, the Razorbacks have won 768 games, have appeared in the College World Series six times, and have held the title of conference champions three times. Arkansas has also made the postseason in all but one season under the direction of Van Horn.

Arkansas needed to come from behind to grab the series win over the Tigers. Missouri got on the board first on a two-run home run by Luke Mann in the 2nd inning to jump out to a 2-0 lead. The Razorbacks tied the game at 2-2 in the 4th inning thanks to a bases-loaded single by Jalen Battles to score Chris Lanzilli, and a bases-loaded walk to Zack Gregory.

Arkansas placed the dagger in Missouri in the top of the 7th inning, when they pulled away by scoring four runs in the inning, taking advantage of two Missouri errors. After a leadoff walk to Cayden Wallace and Peyton Stovall reaching base on a throwing error by Missouri’s Luke Mann, Michael Turner gave the Razorbacks the lead on a single to score Wallace. The second error of the inning would be a balk by the Tigers’ Austin Troesser that scored Stovall, pushing Arkansas ahead, 4-2.

Braydon Webb delivered the final blow with two outs in the inning by doubling down the third base line to score Robert Moore and Michael Turner to give Arkansas the 6-2 lead.

The Tigers would grab two more runs in the bottom of the 8th inning to cut into the Arkansas lead, 6-4, on a Tre Morris RBI single and a fielder’s choice that allowed Carlos Pena to score.

Seven Razorbacks grabbed a hit in the contest, with Michael Turner grabbing two hits to lead the team. On the mound, Jaxon Wiggins had another solid outing by allowing four hits and striking out eight batters over 7.1 innings of work, grabbing his 4th win of the season.

After another solid outing on Sunday, Wiggins says that he is feeling great about his recent performances, and believes in his team ahead of their next series at Mississippi State.

“For me personally, I have all the confidence in the world,” Wiggins said on the SEC Network broadcast following Arkansas’ win. “As for the team, I have confidence in them, and I’m sure that they have confidence.”

The Razorbacks will host a two-game midweek set with Little Rock before hosting the defending national champion Mississippi State Bulldogs for a three-game weekend series beginning Friday night at Baum-Walker Stadium.

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Tygart Bends Mizzou into Knots

The #3 Arkansas Razorbacks outlasted Missouri on Friday night, beating the Tigers 7-5 in Columbia, Missouri, in a back-and-forth affair. While Mizzou never led, they pushed the Hogs by answering Razorback runs time and again. That is, until the 8th inning.

Enter Brady Tygart

The #3 Arkansas Razorbacks outlasted Missouri on Friday night, beating the Tigers 7-5 in Columbia, Missouri, in a back-and-forth affair. While Mizzou never led, they pushed the Hogs by answering Razorback runs time and again. That is, until the 8th inning.

Enter Brady Tygart

The electric freshman baffled the black and gold, making SEC hitters look silly by striking out 5 of the 8 batters he faced. Even after Missouri brought the tying run to the plate, Tygart answered the bell by striking out Mike Colleta to end the game.

Conor Noland started the game for Arkansas, leaving after 5 complete innings on 101 pitches. The Tigers worked the Hogs senior, scratching out 7 hits – 3 of which that never left the infield – while only earning one walk. Noland padded his impressive strikeout total but K-ing 9 batters, giving him 47 for the year. He has an impressive 12.3 K/9 rate this year, notably without an overpowering fastball.

Zebulon Vermillion picked up the win after surrendering the lead by giving up his first three hits and first earned run of the season. Evan Taylor gave up a run in relief but also looked sharp at times.

Any win is a good win the SEC, especially on a Friday night. It was not the prettiest or most dominating win of the season, but it was good to see the Hogs respond after being pushed by a scrappy Missouri team. They’ll play again on Saturday in CoMo. First pitch is set for 2:00pm and will be televised on ESPN Plus.

Weekend Rotation announced for Missouri series

The weekend rotation has been a thing of beauty this season. The trio of Noland, Smith, and Wiggins will look to get the job done again as the Razorbacks travel to Missouri for a three-game SEC series.

The No. 4 Arkansas Razorbacks are sitting atop the SEC Western Division standings following a three-game sweep of the Kentucky Wildcats to open conference play last weekend at Baum-Walker Stadium.

The Razorbacks played all three aspects well. The hot sticks that Arkansas’ lineup has been swinging lately remained constant, pitching limited Wildcats runs, and the fieldwork was nearly flawless. Because of that, they were able to win all three games against Kentucky by outscoring the Wildcats, 18-6.

Starting pitching played a key role in the conference-opening series, and the Razorbacks look to keep using what has been working.

Arkansas plans to use the trio of Connor Noland, Hagen Smith, and Jaxon Wiggins on the mound this weekend as they plan to travel across the border to face the Missouri Tigers, head coach Dave Van Horn announced Thursday.

The Razorbacks will call on Connor Noland to begin the series on the bump. After a strong outing against UIC on March 10, where he tied his career-high in strikeouts with 11, Noland followed that performance with a 6.1 inning game where he struck out seven batters and allowed just one earned run.

Freshman left hander Hagen Smith continues to show consistency on the mound. In his five starts this season, Smith has allowed no more than three earned runs, and has not issued more than three walks.

Sunday’s starter Jaxon Wiggins is coming off his strongest start of the season. In Sunday’s finale against the Wildcats, Wiggins struck out eight batters while walking four and allowing zero runs to score in the 3-1 victory.

The Razorbacks begin their three game series with Missouri on Friday at 6 p.m. CDT in Columbia, Mo.