Arkansas baseball currently has no catchers on its roster.
Starter Michael Turner has exhausted his eligibility. Top reserve Dylan Leach transferred to Missouri earlier in the week. And now, third-stringer Max Soliz is into the portal, as well.
Soliz’s entry is one of three transfer portal entries Arkansas has had this week. Pitchers Gabe Starks and Heston Tole also join him there. Tole announced on Tuesday he would transfer to Texas.
Huge thank you to everyone in Arkansas for the past two years. I will be transferring to the University of Texas for the rest of my college career. @TexasBaseball let’s get to work 🤘🏼. pic.twitter.com/hh6DV93Pla
— Heston Tole (@HestonTole_17) June 28, 2022
Starks’ and Soliz’s destinations are not yet known. All three players were part of Arkansas’ NCAA Tournament team and traveled to the College World Series, though only Starks played in the tournament.
Toles worked 14 1/3 innings with a 3.77 earned-run average and 20 strikeouts. Starks pitched 11 2/3 innings, striking out 18 with a 4.63.
Soliz played in five games with one start, at designated hitter. He had 10 plate appearances, going 2 for 9 with an RBI, two runs and a walk. His exit, combined with Leach’s and Turner’s likely means coach Dave Van Horn will examine the portal for catchers.
Arkansas’ 2022 recruiting class is ranked No. 5 in the nation by Perfect Game, but according to that site, none of the incoming players are catchers.