Two years ago, Will McEntire came from seemingly nowhere to establish himself as the Arkansas baseball team’s do-it-all arm. Bigger things were on the table in 2023, but McEntire struggled with inconsistency in a bigger spotlight.
Now, heading into his redshirt senior season, the Bryant native wants to go back to his old ways.
Friday showed signs of possibility as McEntire worked with great offspeed stuff and frustratedArkansas hitters in the Diamond Hogs’ scrimmage. For a while, at least.
The right-hander was excellent in his first two innings, retiring all six batters on a mix of cutters and curveballs with only an occasional fastball tossed in. In his third inning, command abandoned him and he allowed six base-runners, including four of whom eventually scored.
One outing isn’t going to determine where McEntire sits in coach Dave Van Horn’s pitching arsenal, but the pitcher is likely to be leaned on again as a starter in Arkansas’ mid-week games. That is if he can find that consistency.
Two years ago, McEntire pitched in 12 games with eight starts, striking 49 batters in 48 2/3 innings while opponents hit .198. Last year, though, in 21 games (10 starts), the opposition hit .271. The good news is that McEntire’s strikeout rate only dropped minimally and his walk rate actually improved.
Besides, Friday’s results were more positive than negative, considering Diamond Hogs are still two weeks away from their season opener and McEntire largely had to face a lineup that’s a big reason Arkansas is a unanimous Top-10 team in the country in the preseason polls.
The Razorbacks are set to scrimmage again Saturday, but with rain in the forecast, things may be moved indoors and out of public view.
Arkansas opens its season at Baum-Walker Stadium on Friday, February 16 against James Madison.