Tag: Connor Noland

Peyton Pallette officially signs with Chicago White Sox

Peyton Pallete’s first assignment following Tommy John surgery will be with the White Sox organization

One of Arkansas’ highest draft picks has officially signed his rookie contract.

[autotag]Peyton Pallette[/autotag], who missed the 2022 season to recover from Tommy John surgery, has signed his rookie contract with the Chicago White Sox, the organization that selected him with the No. 62 overall pick.

Pallette is in for a hefty payday. Jim Callis of MLB Pipeline is reporting that Pallette has signed with the White Sox for $1.5 million, which is just under slot value for the No. 62 overall selection.

In two seasons at Arkansas, Pallette struck out 70 batters while posting an ERA of 3.79. In 2021, Pallete appeared in 15 games, making 11 starts. He struck out 67 batters while issuing 20 walks in 56 innings of work.

Pallette was expected to become the anchor to the Arkansas weekend rotation in 2022, however, an injury to his ulnar collateral ligament forced him to miss what eventually was his final season at Arkansas, making the way for [autotag]Connor Noland[/autotag] to take the role.

Pallete was the second Razorback selected in the 2022 MLB Draft, and one of three selected in the second round. Cayden Wallace was taken 13 picks higher by the Kansas City Royals, and Robert Moore was taken with a compensation pick by the Milwaukee Brewers.

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Jordan Sprinkle spurns Arkansas, signs rookie deal with Chicago White Sox

Jordan Sprinkle, who announced his intent to transfer to Arkansas following the 2022 season, has elected to turn pro.

Turns out that Jordan Sprinkle will not report to Arkansas after all.

Sprinkle, who announced his intent to transfer to Arkansas from UC-Santa Barbara earlier this month, was selected in the fourth round of the 2022 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft by the Chicago White Sox.

On Tuesday, it was reported that Sprinkle has elected to sign a deal with the White Sox, and will forgo his commitment to Arkansas Baseball. According to MLB Pipeline’s Jim Callis, the White Sox signed Sprinkle for full slot value for the 131st pick for $452,900.

Sprinkle had an impressive three-season career for the Gauchos. He hit for a .319 average with 10 home runs, 67 RBI, and 51 stolen bases. He was known best for his ability to get extra-base hits. In his three year career, Sprinkle recorded 29 double and six triples.

Sprinkle joins four other Razorbacks who have signed their rookie contracts. Tuesday was the busiest day for draft signings, as [autotag]Robert Moore[/autotag] and [autotag]Jalen Battles[/autotag] also signed deals with the Milwaukee Brewers and Tampa Bay Rays respectively. Pitchers [autotag]Connor Noland[/autotag] (Cubs) and [autotag]Evan Taylor[/autotag] (Marlins) have also signed rookie deals.

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It’s official: Connor Noland signs with Chicago Cubs

Arkansas ace Connor Noland has signed with the Chicago Cubs after being drafted in the ninth round.

Connor Noland entertained the idea of returning to Arkansas for a sixth season. But in the end, few would blame him for his choice.

Noland, who was taken in the ninth round of the MLB Draft earlier in the week by the Chicago Cubs, signed with the franchise on Saturday.

Noland, a graduate of Greenwood High, arrived at Arkansas as both a quarterback and starting pitcher. He beat Tulsa on the gridiron as a redshirt freshman before focusing exclusively on baseball.

This past season, the right-hander had a 3.65 earned-run average with 113 strikeouts in 116 innings. During Arkansas’ postseason run, which saw the Diamond Hogs come within a game of the College World Series championships series, Noland had a 1.53 ERA in 29 1/3 innings.

Financial details of the deal with the Cubs organization are unknown, though the slot value for the pick is $164,500.

Noland was one of nine Razorbacks players from the 2022 roster to be taken in the draft. Arkansas also lost top pitching recruit Cole Phillips to the Atlanta Braves after Phillips signed close to the weekend.

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Arkansas’ likely ace next year taken in MLB Draft

Bosnic was expected to take Connor Noland’s place atop the Arkansas rotation, though he still could.

Julian Bosnic has never thrown a pitch at Arkansas. He still may not.

Bosnic, who announced his transfer from South Carolina to the Diamond Hogs earlier in July, was taken in the 14th round of the 2022 MLB draft by the Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday.

Arkansas’ rotation in 2022 was Connor Noland, Hagen Smith and Jaxon Wiggins for most of the season. Noland was drafted by the Chicago Cubs on Monday as is expected to sign. Bosnic would likely have – and still may be – slotted right into his spot at the top of the weekend rotation for the Diamond Hogs.

Bosnic had a 2.78 earned-run average with 78 strikeouts in 50 1/3 innings for the Gamecocks two seasons ago. Opponents hit just .133 against him. An arm injury kept him out this year.

He could attend Arkansas, anyway, as he was a 15th-round selection last year and decided to return to Columbia. The deadline for signing is August 1.

Thank you, Connor: Noland drafted by Cubs, likely ending his Arkansas career

Connor Noland will go down as an all-time Arkansas athlete.

Few Arkansas athletes have been as beloved as Connor Noland in the last decade.

The Razorbacks’ pitcher and former quarterback, plus a Greenwood graduate, Noland had to play through the Chad Morris era in football and deal with a season lost to injury and another to COVID in baseball.

In 2021, his fifth season in Fayetteville, Noland was the Arkansas ace. He had 113 strikeout in 116 innings with a 3.65 earned-run average. Noland was even better in the postseason, rocking a 1.53 ERA in 29 1/3 innings as Arkansas made it within a game of reaching the National Championship series.

That season was enough to have him selected in the ninth round of the 2022 MLB draft by the Chicago Cubs on Monday night, likely signaling the end of his career with the Razorbacks.

Noland had mentioned in the early summer that he was considering returning to Arkansas for a sixth and final season. But as pointed out by Best of Arkansas Sports’ Andrew Hutchinson, 99 percent of players taken in the first 10 rounds sign.

Arkansas may have their ace after getting transfer from SEC rival South Carolina

Julian Bosnic should be in Arkansas baseball’s weekend rotation next season.

Connor Noland may return to Arkansas for a sixth season. If he does, he will likely be the Diamond Hogs’ No. 1 weekend starter.

If he doesn’t, coach Dave Van Horn may have landed his replacement in Julian Bosnic.

Bosnic, a left-hander from South Carolina, announced his transfer via the portal to Arkansas on Saturday. He entered the portal in late June.

The 6-foot-3, 218-pounder missed all of last season after undergoing surgery for a flexor strain in his elbow. He was expected to be one of the Gamecocks’ weekend starters had it not been for injury.

His last healthy season in 2021, Bosnic struck out 78 batters in 50 2/3 innings. Opponents hit just .133 against him, largely out of bullpen as South Carolina anticipated stretching him to the rotation in 2022.

Bosnic was drafted by San Francisco in the 16th round of last year’s draft following his breakout season. Arkansas is likely have several players – including third baseman Cayden Wallace and second baseman Robert Moore – taken early in this year’s draft later this month.

Bosnic is Arkansas’ second baseball commit from the transfer portal in as many days. Shortstop Jordan Sprinkle from California-Santa Barbara committed on Friday.

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Dave Van Horn doesn’t hold back on draft: “It’s ridiculous”

Arkansas coach Dave Van Horn is not a fan of the MLB Draft this time of year.

Arkansas baseball coach Dave Van Horn has a point.

The Razorbacks long-time head man put a wrap on the Arkansas season with a end-of-year press conference on Thursday. Among the topics were, of course, the 2023 Diamond Hogs.

That’s where things became more testy than usual.

See, traditionally the MLB Draft had been in early-to-mid-June. But in 2021, Major League Baseball moved it to mid-July. This year, it’s in mid-to-late-July (specifically July 17-19), making things difficult for people like Van Horn who are seeking roster clarity heading into the fall semester.

“What a horrible time for the draft. The draft should have been last week,” Van Horn said. “I’ve said this 10 times this year: It makes no sense at all. No one likes it except the [MLB] owners. They think it’s cool to have the draft during the All-Star game. Nobody cares.”

In baseball, players don’t have to declare for the MLB Draft. If they’re selected and have eligibility remaining in college, than can choose to sign or stay in school. It’s straight-forward.

But it also creates the problem of the unknown. Several Arkansas recruits and current players – namely third baseman Cayden Wallace and second baseman Robert Moore – are likely to be taken. Most of them taken high. The question is whether where they are taken is high enough to entice them to leave the Diamond Hogs.

“I mean, it’s a joke. So we’ve got to get through that, and then you’ve got about 14 days after the draft to see who’s going to sign and now it’s August 1. That’s when the smoke will clear. Hopefully within a couple days after that, we’ll have a final roster. There could be a lot of changes,” Van Horn said.

Arkansas will likely only return one position-player starter, but could return all three weekend starters and a bulk of the bullpen.

Connor Noland hints at a possible return to Arkansas

Arkansas’ ace discussed his future during an interview with a local morning show on Wednesday.

The key piece to Arkansas’ pitching rotation for the 2022 season has a big decision to make.

Arkansas right-handed pitcher [autotag]Connor Noland[/autotag] joined “The Morning Rush” on ESPN Arkansas Wednesday morning, where the topic of declaring for the Major League Baseball draft was discussed.

When asked whether or not he had plans to begin his professional career, or return to Arkansas for his fifth season of eligibility that has been granted due to the shortened 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Noland says that he is going to take his time to make the right decision for him.

Noland stepped up in a huge way for Arkansas, as he took over the Friday night starter role in place of projected ace [autotag]Peyton Pallette[/autotag], who suffered an elbow injury prior to the start of the 2022 season.

Noland, who had not gotten significant starts on the mound since his freshman season in 2019, went 8-6 in 19 starts, accumulating a 3.65 ERA with 113 strikeouts to just 34 issued walks in 116.0 innings pitched. He tells hosts Tye Richardson and Tommy Craft that he prepared during the offseason to be a shoe-in for that role.

The MLB Draft is set to begin Sunday, July 17 and last until Tuesday, July 19. If Noland is not selected in a spot that is beneficial, he has the opportunity to return to Arkansas for next season in an effort to improve his draft stock.

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Heartbreak in Omaha: Arkansas falls to Ole Miss, as Hogs leave College World Series

Dylan DeLucia’s Herculean performance for Ole Miss eliminated Arkansas from the College World Series.

Arkansas baseball will eventually get over the hump. But sometimes a buzzsaw stands in the way.

The Razorbacks leave the College World Series after a 2-0 Ole Miss win Thursday afternoon that put the Rebels in the national championship

Rebels pitcher Dylan DeLucia threw a complete game on 113 pitches. He gave up just four hits with zero walks and six strikeouts, silencing the Arkansas bats from the word go.

Ole Miss plated its runs in the fourth and seventh on an RBI double from Kevin Graham and an RBI single from Calvin Harris. They wouldn’t need more than that.

Arkansas simply couldn’t find the sticks. The Razorbacks never had a runner go beyond second base and even that happened just twice, in the first and in the seventh. Their starter, Connor Noland, did everything he could, tossing eight innings of seven-hit ball with zero walks and seven strikeouts.

The Razorbacks finished the season 46-21 and in the CWS for the third time in the last four years. They will have to replace Noland, catcher Michael Turner, outfielder Chris Lanzilli and likely third baseman Cayden Wallace and possibly second baseman Robert Moore as the latter two are eligible for the MLB draft this summer and are expected to be taken in the first few rounds.

Ole Miss will play Oklahoma in a best-of-three national title series that begins Friday.

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Stay Golden: Robert Moore wins Arkansas’ first-ever Gold Glove Award

The junior is honored as College Baseball’s top 2nd baseman after fielding at a 0.992 clip this season.

One of the best defenders in College Baseball now has an award to back it up.

Arkansas’ [autotag]Robert Moore[/autotag] has been awarded the Rawlings Gold Glove award, being named the best 2nd baseman in College Baseball, Rawlings alongside the American Baseball Coaches Association announced Wednesday.

The junior from Leawood, Kan. becomes the first-ever Razorback to win the award after an incredible season at 2nd base by fielding at a 0.992 clip. In 63 games, Moore has recorded 92 putouts, has assisted in making 163 outs, and has only made two errors.

He, alongside [autotag]Jalen Battles[/autotag], have teamed up to become one of the best middle-infield duos in the country. Battles was unfortunately left off of the finalist list for best shortstops in the country.

In true Robert Moore fashion, he spent time to appreciate everyone who put him in this position to win the award.

Joining Moore as a finalist for the Gold Glove Award from Arkansas was pitcher [autotag]Connor Noland[/autotag]. Noland, however, finished behind Iowa’s Ben Beutel as the nation’s best defender at pitcher. The senior right-hander fielded at 1.000 in 2022, making five putouts and assisting in recording 16 outs.

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