Tag: Jalen Battles

Diamond Hogs fall to old rival in final nonconference game

Arkansas fell to 4-4 in its last eight games after losing to its biggest out-of-SEC rival on Tuesday at home.

Missouri State hasn’t been on the national radar in a couple of seasons. But the Bears always get up to play [autotag]Arkansas baseball[/autotag].

The Diamond Hogs were shell-shocked Tuesday night in the final nonconference game at Baum-Walker Stadium by their biggest out-of-league rival, 6-4.

Arkansas (34-11) managed just two hits through eight innings against a Missouri State team that carried a 7.56 earned-run average in league play. And it isn’t as though the Razorbacks played a batch of reserves. Dylan Leach’s solo home run started the third to make it 2-1 Bears, but it was the second.

Missouri State  (22-19) tacked on an insurance run in the fifth and then three in the ninth. By the time [autotag]Robert Moore[/autotag] had Arkansas’ third hit, an RBI single, there were two outs in the bottom of the ninth. The Diamond Hogs made it interested after Moore’s knock, loading the bases with two outs by virtue of a hit-by-pitch and a throwing error. [autotag]Jalen Battles[/autotag] then singled home two more runs, giving Arkansas as many hits in the ninth as it had in the game to that point.

Leach came back to bat with runners at second and third and representing the winning run. But his rollover to shortstop ended in a groundout and Missouri State held on.

Arkansas’ loss makes the Diamond Hogs just 4-4 in their last eight games. They carry a two-game lead for second place in the SEC with three regular-season weekends remaining. The Razorbacks play at No. 19 Auburn on Friday through Sunday.

Razorbacks shut out LSU to take series

The Razorbacks clinched the series over LSU by relying on the long ball and solid pitching.

In game one of the much-anticipated series between rivals No. 6 Arkansas and No. 12 LSU, the Razorbacks relied on solid pitching from Connor Noland, who carried a no-hitter into the 6th inning, and again on Brady Tygart late in the game to secure the win.

Friday’s game was much of the same, as freshman [autotag]Hagen Smith[/autotag] was dominant from the very beginning in Arkansas’ 4-0 win over LSU at Baum-Walker Stadium.

Arkansas (27-7, 10-4 SEC) got a solid outing from Smith on Friday, as he pitched arguably his best game against an SEC opponent in his young career. In the win over LSU (23-11, 7-7 SEC), Smith matched his season-high in strikeouts against SEC foes with seven and allowed a season-low two hits and zero earned runs in SEC play in seven innings of work.

[autotag]Zebulon Vermillion[/autotag] and [autotag]Evan Taylor[/autotag] finished the game and combined to allow one hit in the final three frames.

While Smith did his job on the mound, the Arkansas defense backed him up as well. The Razorbacks played errorless ball, and made elite plays such as this one from short stop [autotag]Jalen Battles[/autotag]:

All four of Arkansas’ runs came via the long ball, with two coming in the 3rd inning.

[autotag]Zack Gregory[/autotag] put the Razorbacks on the board with a solo home run to lead off the inning. He smashed the second pitch of the at-bat to left field to give Arkansas the 1-0 lead. [autotag]Brady Slavens[/autotag] walked later in the inning, setting up [autotag]Michael Turner[/autotag] to extend the lead by nailing his 4th home run to lift Arkansas to a 3-0 lead.

To add insurance, [autotag]Chris Lanzilli[/autotag] joined the home run party by hitting a lazer to left field, pushing the Arkansas lead to 4-0. Lanzilli’s 47th career home run traveled 361 feet, and left his bat at a screaming 100 miles per hour according to Arkansas Baseball Player Development.

Arkansas will go for the sweep over LSU on Saturday. First pitch for the final game of the series is set for 2 p.m. CT.

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Sticks of the Game: Every Diamond Hogs player reaches against UAPB in Game 1

Arkansas’ lineup, after some early season struggles, has been rather consistent in the last several weeks. Arkansas Pine-Bluff allowed the Razorbacks to add some more good mojo to such work in Game One on Tuesday. The Diamond Hogs had no trouble …

Arkansas’ lineup, after some early season struggles, has been rather consistent in the last several weeks. Arkansas Pine-Bluff allowed the Razorbacks to add some more good mojo to such work in Game One on Tuesday.

The Diamond Hogs had no trouble with UAPB in the first of two games of a doubleheader, winning 15-0.

Every Arkansas starter reached base and all but one had at least one hit. All of them also scored, saved one player, as well. Arkansas racked up 15 hits, eight walks and a hit-by-pitch in the win. Five of the knocks went for extra bases.

These players had the best of the day.

Arkansas falls to Florida in finale, ending impressive streak

Two comeback efforts from the bat of Zack Gregory weren’t enough as the Razorbacks fall to Florida on Saturday, snapping an SEC series winning streak of 13.

Amazing things must come to an end, it is inevitable.

For the No. 2 Arkansas Razorbacks (23-7, 8-4 SEC), their impressive streak of 13 straight SEC series wins dating back to the 2019 season came to a close on Saturday, with a 9-7 loss to Florida (21-11, 5-7 SEC), with the Gators taking two-of-three games from the Razorbacks at Florida Ballpark in Gainesville, Fla.

Down 7-4 entering the 6th inning, Arkansas cut into the lead thanks to an error and a bases-loaded walk to trim the Gator advantage to 7-6 and tied the game in the 8th inning on a solo home run by [autotag]Zack Gregory[/autotag]. However, Florida would respond by scoring two runs thanks to brothers Deric and Jud Fabian, giving the Gators the win.

After a quiet start to the game, both offenses found their groove. Florida grabbed an early lead, and Arkansas sent an equally brutal blow right back.

The Gators would begin the inning with two singles by Colby Halter and Sterlin Thompson respectively. The third single of the inning would score the first run of the game for Florida. Wyatt Langford singled up the middle to score Halter, giving Florida the 1-0 lead.

The Gators would waste no time expanding the lead, as BT Riopelle crushed his 9th home run of the season to clear the bases, and extend Florida’s lead to 4-0.

Arkansas took the four-run blow by Florida personally, as they responded by scoring four runs of their own in the top of the 4th inning. [autotag]Jalen Battles[/autotag] hit an RBI single with two outs in the inning to put the Razorbacks on the board. Zack Gregory’s first comeback attempt would be a double down the right field line to score Battles, as well as [autotag]Peyton Stovall[/autotag] and [autotag]Michael Turner[/autotag], to tie the game at 4-4.

Langford would help the Gators once more in the 5th inning with a three-run home run in the 5th to give his team another lead, 7-4. Arkansas responded by scoring two runs in the top of the 6th to drop Florida’s lead to one run.

The hero of the game for Arkansas at the plate was Zack Gregory. Despite not grabbing the win, Gregory put the team on his back twice, erasing two Gators leads in key moments of the game. He, along with Battles, had multiple hits for Arkansas.

[autotag]Brady Tygart[/autotag] took the loss for Arkansas out of the bullpen. In 2.2 innings of work, the freshman struck out four batters while allowing two runs on two hits. Starter [autotag]Jaxon Wiggins[/autotag] allowed nine hits and seven runs in 4.0 innings, striking out five batters.

Arkansas will look to begin a new streak next weekend at home against LSU. The previous streak dated back to May 16-18, 2019, when Arkansas lost two-of-three games to Texas A&M in College Station. That season was the last time that the Razorbacks participated in the College World Series.

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Florida no match for Arkansas series opener

Connor Noland pitched seven innings of one-hit ball in Arkansas’ 8-1 win over Florida.

The SEC has long been the best college baseball conference in the country. Arkansas is making mincemeat of its fellow members in 2022, though.

The Razorbacks, the second-ranked team in the country, dispatched perennial power Florida in Gainesville on Thursday night, 8-1, in the teams’ series opener. The win lifted the Hogs to 23-5 and 8-2 in the SEC. Only Tennessee, the No. 1 team in the nation, has a better record at 28-1 and 9-0. Those two aren’t scheduled to play this year during the regular season.

As for Thursday, it was all Arkansas, even if it started a bit late.

The Diamond Hogs dropped five runs in the ninth for plenty of insurance. [autotag]Cayden Wallace[/autotag] and [autotag]Braydon Webb[/autotag] homered in back-to-back at-bats to start the inning as Arkansas batted around. [autotag]Michael Turner[/autotag] hit an RBI double, [autotag]Jalen Battles[/autotag] plated a run with a sacrifice fly and [autotag]Peyton Stovall[/autotag] singled home a run to complete the scoring in the inning.

Arkansas opened with Turner’s RBI single in the fourth. It was followed in the fifth by a Wallace RBI single and then in the sixth with a solo shot from [autotag]Chris Lanzilli[/autotag].

Florida managed just three hits for the game and didn’t score until the ninth. Arkansas starter [autotag]Connor Noland[/autotag], who was named to the midseason watch list for the Golden Spikes Trophy earlier in the week, worked seven innings, giving up just a single hit and one walk while striking out seven.

Game 2 in the series is set for Friday at 5:30 p.m. CT.

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Sticks of the Weekend: Battles, Wallace lead Razorbacks over Mississippi State

Arkansas’ bats played a key role in their third-straight series win over Mississippi State

The season continues to roll along for the No. 2 Arkansas Razorbacks, as they took two-of-three from rival Mississippi State over the weekend at Baum-Walker Stadium.

The Razorbacks could not complete the sweep, as the Bulldogs scored two runs in the top of the 12th inning of Sunday’s finale to salvage a game in the series by defeating Arkansas, 5-3. But, the damage had already been done, as Arkansas outscored Mississippi State 20-6 in the first two games of the series to claim their 13th-straight SEC series win, and their third straight series win over Mississippi State dating back to 2019.

Hitting came at a premium for the Razorbacks in the series win, as they had solid production from [autotag]Jalen Battles[/autotag], [autotag]Cayden Wallace[/autotag], and [autotag]Zack Gregory[/autotag] in all three games, with [autotag]Brayden Webb[/autotag] and [autotag]Brady Slavens[/autotag] using their bats to create scoring opportunities on the weekend.

Battles grabbed up his first multi-home run game of the season in Friday’s 8-1 win over the Bulldogs, he would go on to grab two more hits over the weekend. Cayden Wallace added five more hits to his season total, with his most productive game of the weekend being Saturday’s 12-5 victory, where he went 2-for-5 with four RBI. Finally, Zack Gregory quietly had a solid weekend, as he hit solo home runs in Saturday’s and Sunday’s games.

Brady Slavens only played in two games against the Bulldogs, but he put in the work in the small opportunity he was given. Slavens went 3-for-6 with a double, home run, and four RBI. Brayden Webb did the majority of his work in the finale, as he was the only Arkansas batter to record multiple hits in Sunday’s loss. In the game, Webb hit his sixth home run of the season.

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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Sticks of the Games: Big innings carry Arkansas past UIC in two games Thursday

Cayden Wallace is becoming a mainstay on this list for Arkansas. So is Michael Turner.

Great teams sometimes struggle, but the best teams come out the other side most of the team even when it looks like they won’t.

Arkansas is a great team.

The Razorbacks likely haven’t had the start they were hoping for, losing at least one game every weekend in each of the first three to start the season. So far in the fourth weekend, however, two wins in a day marks a good start.

Arkansas beat Illinois-Chicago 12-4 in the first game of a doubleheader on Thursday and then rallied with four runs in the eighth to win the second game, 5-4. 

Five different Arkansas players had multiple hits, led by three from third baseman Cayden Wallace in the first game. Then, in the second, despite only registering six hits, the Diamond Hogs reached base 18 times (10 walks and two bean-balls) to create just enough on the base paths to get the victory.

On a day like that, picking out the best bats of the game is a bit tough. Here goes, anyway.