Arkansas baseball stars readying for professional futures as MLB Draft arrives

BY DUDLEY E. DAWSON

Arkansas has several of its players on the verge of starting their professional baseball careers and a couple of them are likely to find out their destinations on Sunday night when the 2024 Major League Baseball Draft begins.

Razorback ace pitcher Hagen Smith is projected to be a top 10 pick, second baseman Peyton Stovall a a top 60 selection, pitchers Brady Tygart and Mason Molina top 100 ones and catcher Hudson White a top 160 choice.

The three-day event begins Sunday night at 6 p.m. at Cowtown Coliseum in Fort Worth with television coverage on the Major League Baseball Channel

Arkansas head coach Dave Van Horn has an idea what he is facing in terms of losing signees and current players in draft, which will have rounds 1-3 on Sunday night, 4-10 on Tuesday and 11-20 on Wednesday.

“Obviously what round, how much money do you want, there’s a lot in there,” Van Horn said.  “I mean, it’s not really my place to figure that out. We have them mentally signing. In our mind, they’re signing.”

Expecting a big hit from the draft, Van Horn has added 34 names to his 2025 roster – 17 high school players, 6 junior college signees and 10 portal transfers from Division I and one of the nation’s top Division II players.

It’s a group that will compete in next season’s expanded 16-team SEC with the addition of Oklahoma and Texas and the elimination of Eastern and Western Divisions.

“So we’re making sure that our young guys are out doing their thing, we’re bringing in a couple of guys and we can be a team that can really compete in the SEC next year when it’s 1-16, one league,” Van Horn said.

Smith is set to be the first Razorback to go with The Athletic’s Keith Law seeing him going to Kansas City with the sixth pick and ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel and MLB.com’s Jonathan Mayo having him being seventh to St. Louis in their mock drafts.

Van Horn doesn’t expect him to spend most time in the minor leagues.

“A guy like Hagen (Smith), I’m just telling you, when they get him to their site – and they’ll take him to their spring site – and he throws a bullpen in front of them, and then they put him in a scrimmage against some guys, they’re going to go, ‘Wow, this is not normal,’’’ Van Horn said. “If he throws it over the plate, they may start him somewhere, they may just say, ‘Put him in the bullpen up there in September, what the heck. He’s going to be in the big leagues next year.’

Stovall is viewed as the 58th best prospect by D1 Baseball, Tygart 82nd, Molina 98th and  White 158th.

“Well, first off with Peyton, I think Peyton had a great year offensively,” Van Horn said. “ I mean, he did all of his hitting from almost conference on. He didn’t get a lot of the preseason stuff. A lot of times guys can build up their averages a little bit early.

“…He did a great job. I think he hit around .340, played outstanding second base. Arm’s still not 100% back and, again, he was still learning how to play second base. His better days are in front of him. I think he’s going to be a good draft and when he gets older, stronger, maybe really healthy, he could play for a long time.”

Tygart and Molina both started out the 2024 season in solid fashion, but struggled down the stretch and Tygart came up injured.

“I think they’ll both be drafted,” Van Horn said. “I just don’t know where. I mean, I don’t know where any of them will be drafted. That’s not my job. But yeah, I think someone will draft them. I think sometimes it’s on… Is it all the teams want your or are there five teams that want you to drive the price up a little bit?

White ended up being one of Arkansas’ best  hitters with a .297 average, 8 homers and 33 RBIs overall, but hits team-leading .330, 5 home runs and 16 RBIs during SEC games.

“I thought White down the stretch, he was — when a lot of guys weren’t, he was really swinging the bat well,” Van Horn said. “I thought he was catching well. He was throwing the ball better than ever. But he hit down the stretch like we hoped he would hit most of the year.

“Just didn’t have a good first half, first three-quarters of the year, was just okay, and then bang, there it was. He hit like that in the fall last fall. We were really excited. As a matter of fact, I think our team ranked him the No. 1 hitter.”

There’s also draft interest in first baseman Ben McLaughlin, utility player Peyton Holt, pitcher Jake Faherty and outfielder Kendall Diggs, who confirmed that he is scheduled for surgery for a torn labrum next week.

That was likely a major factor in his drop offs this season in his batting average, homers and RBIs from 2023.

“Kendall, if he comes back, will have an opportunity to play outfield,” Van Horn said. “ Honestly, obviously he could DH, play outfield. Who’s to say he didn’t play in the infield for us as well because that’s what he came here as so we’ll see.

“I’ve been in contact with him a lot, when I say a lot, a few times since season ended. Through texting recently, couple of phone calls… Appreciate him trying because he was hurt.”

Faherty was 0-1 with a 1.84 ERA while allowing joys three earned runs in 16 relief appearances covering 14 2/3 innings. He fanned 26 and walked 9.

“I feel like somebody is going to draft Faherty,” Van Horn. “What a great arm. When you look at his numbers, you kind of go, ‘wow.’ Super low ERA. We knew this was going to happen to him.

“When he walked through the door, he was a big arm. Really raw. He was all the little things. Holding runners, fielding his position. Just baseball. It’s what you’ve got to do to stop teams. As far as pitching and guys hitting him, nobody’s ever really hit him here.”

Photo by John D. James