Mississippi State will have their biggest test so far this season as they'll travel up to Fayetteville to take on Arkansas. The Razorbacks enter the weekend 19-4 overall and sit atop the SEC West at 5-1, good for 2nd in D1Baseball's top 25 Poll.
Last season, Arkansas came to Starkville and came away with a sweep, and they bring back many talented pieces from last year's team that made it to a Super Regional.
Pitching Matchups:
Friday: RHP Preston Johnson (2-1, 3.41 ERA) vs. Connor Noland (3-1, 3.41 ERA)
Saturday: RHP Parker Stinnett (3-0 4.67 ERA) vs. LHP Hagen Smith (4-1, 3.45 ERA)
Sunday: RHP Cade Smith (4-1, 2.91 ERA) vs. RHP Jaxon Wiggins (4-0, 3.71 ERA)
The Razorbacks lost their ace, Peyton Pallette, to Tommy John Surgery before the start of the season, but they haven't missed a beat without him, as pitching has been their biggest strength. Arkansas sits at third in the SEC with a 3.46 team ERA and fifth in opponent batting average at .223.
Righty Connor Noland, a former 3-star quarterback recruit, played just a minor bullpen role last season but has held down the Friday spot. The senior has been a consistent strike-thrower, holding a 47/9 strikeout to walk ratio in 34.1 innings. Talented lefty Hagen Smith follows him on Saturdays, and the freshman has made an immediate impact, having yet to allow more than three runs in a start. Sophomore Jaxon Wiggins closes out the rotation with a dominant .161 opponent batting average but has struggled with command at times, walking 19 batters in 34 innings.
What puts the Razorback pitching staff over the top is their bullpen. Last season, they heavily relied on Golden Spikes winner Kevin Kopps, but they have many options they can go to this year. Zebulon Vermillion, who started some games for the Razorbacks last season, has been lights out with a 1.69 ERA and 17 strikeouts in eight relief appearances. Arkansas has also gotten double digit innings out of righty Brady Tygart and lefty Evan Taylor, who both hold sub-3 ERAs. Their go-to guy has been Kole Ramage, who leads the Razorback bullpen with 20 innings, but has struggled as of late surrendering at least one run in each of his last five appearances.
Hitting:
It may come as a surprise, but the Arkansas offense has gotten to a slow start this year. The Razorbacks come in at 12th in the SEC with a .278 team batting average and 9th in home runs with 27, a category they led the nation in last season.
Catcher Michael Turner has been the toughest out for the Razorbacks. The transfer from Kent State has a .369 batting average and 1.092 OPS on the season and is tied for 2nd on the team with four home runs. Switch-hitting 2nd baseman Robert Moore, the son of Kansas City Royals General Manager, was one of the top 2nd basemen in the country last season, hitting 16 home runs with a .558 slugging percentage, but the power numbers haven't quite been there for him this season, as he's hit just two homers with a .469 slugging percentage so far. Moore, however, has been more of an on-base threat this season, raising his on-base percentage from .384 to .422.
Senior 1B/OF Brady Slavens was a huge piece of the Arkansas lineup last season, hitting 14 home runs and leading the Razorbacks with 63 RBIs, but hasn't gotten off to a great start. Slavens has seen his average batting dip down from .284 to .187 and has hit just three home runs so far.
True freshman first baseman Peyton Stovall has shown some promise, hitting .288 with a .374 OBP, and 3rd baseman Cayden Wallace has built off an impressive freshman year, hitting .304 with a .893 OPS and four home runs. Centerfielder Brandon Webb has also been a nice piece; though he's batting just .241, he leads the team with five home runs and is 2nd with a .537 slugging percentage.
While Arkansas has gotten off to a bit of a slow start on the offensive side, the players in their lineup have shown what they are capable of in the past. The Bulldog pitching staff will have their hands full with a lineup capable of an offensive explosion on any given day.
