Arkansas baseball notebook: Why Dave Van Horn is embracing late-season adversity
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Forty wins in early May. A program-record home winning streak. First place in the SEC West. The best starting pitcher in America and a near lock to host a regional.
Arkansas baseball is in the midst of a terrific season, but head coach Dave Van Horn wants more. Speaking to fans and media members at Monday's monthly Swatter's Club Luncheon, Van Horn said the Razorbacks "aren't happy."
Recency bias may be a factor. No. 3 Arkansas (40-9) is coming off a series loss to No. 5 Kentucky during which season-long frustrations reappeared in a top-10 showdown. The Hogs struggled at the plate and their starting pitchers walked too many batters.
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But the lineup hasn't lived up to expectations all spring, and Van Horn still doesn't have preferred starters in center field, left field or designated hitter.
And still, Van Horn believes this season's stress could be beneficial come June.
"Like 2021, it didn't finish very good. Sometimes you have to go through some adversity and some tough times so you can handle it at the end," Van Horn said. "Hopefully that's what's going on with us a little bit."
This year's team got off to a better start, but Arkansas entered the 2021 NCAA Tournament with a 46-10 record and hadn't lost a weekend series all year. The Hogs spent the final 10 weeks of the season ranked No. 1 in the country, but the season ended with a loss to N.C. State in the Super Regionals.
The 2024 Razorbacks have hit a couple of speed bumps toward the end of the regular season that the 2021 squad did not. Van Horn hopes series losses at Alabama and Kentucky provide the added adversity that paves the way for a breakthrough finish and the program's first national title.
Could some rest help the Arkansas baseball bats?
The Razorbacks have played 23 games in the last 35 days. They've had multiple weekend doubleheaders and a trio of two-game midweek series.
Van Horn admitted Monday that his team is tired, but he hopes a little rest could reignite the offense.
Van Horn closed the facility for two days after Arkansas returned from Kentucky. The only players allowed inside the Hunt Baseball Development Center were pitchers who needed to stay on schedule with their pre-game work.
"It was a tough month, physically and mentally. I think they have a couple days off and just a little downtime, not having a midweek game should pick up their energy levels and their strength," he said.
Texas A&M matchup flexed to three TV games
Arkansas' final series of the season against the No. 2 Aggies (40-8) could decide the SEC West, and all three games in College Station, Texas, will be on national television.
The series begins Thursday, May 16 and concludes on Saturday, May 18. The series opener will be on ESPN2 with the final two games available to watch on SEC Network.
Arkansas currently holds a one-game lead over Texas A&M in the SEC West standings. The Hogs face No. 15 Mississippi State in Fayetteville this weekend, while the Aggies go on the road to play Ole Miss.
This article originally appeared on Fort Smith Times Record: Arkansas baseball's Dave Van Horn embracing late-season adversity
