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Winning Pitcher: Cody Adcock (1-0)
Losing Pitcher: Lebarron Johnson Jr (0-1)
BOX SCORE
RECAP
The Horns were finally back in action on Friday night at Globe Life Field. Texas faced a talented Arkansas team and ended up taking a 3-2 loss on opening day. The game was scoreless through six innings thanks to dominant starts from Lucas Gordon and Hagen Smith.
The Hogs began the 7th with a pair of singles against Lebarron Johnson Jr and were able to put three runs on the board when Chris Stuart came on in relief.
Stuart caught way too much plate with those pitches and Arkansas made him pay.
Texas immediately responded with a pair of runs in the bottom half of the frame, including this home run from outfielder Porter Brown on the 10th pitch of the at-bat.
Porter was down 0-2 and fouled off six pitches before homering. It very well could go down as the best at-bat of the year.
In the end, Texas was just 1-10 with runners on base while Arkansas went 4-16 in that same category. Those extra clutch hits were the difference in the game.
BIG MOMENT
Peyton Powell and Eric Kennedy each hit one-out singles in the 8th inning. These hits put the tying run in scoring position and prompted Dave Van Horn to bring in his closer, Brady Tygart. Texas had Dylan Campbell and Porter Brown set to hit, two of the best and most experienced hitters on the team. It was clear the game was likely going to be decided with those two plate appearances and it was. Tygart had 8 saves for the Razorbacks last year and was pumping a mid-90s fastball and a hammer of a breaking ball. Dylan Campbell went down swinging and Tygart followed up that punchout with another strikeout, this time of Porter Brown, to end the inning and the threat.
Texas could not have asked for two better guys to be at the plate in that situation. Tygart was just better tonight and came up huge in the big spot.
INDIVIDUAL PERFORMANCE TO NOTE
The sophomore lefty Hagen Smith was phenomenal for the Razorbacks on Friday. Smith was 94-97 with a fastball that exploded out of his hand and jumped on the UT hitters. Smith certainly looked like he made strides this offseason, so much so that he caught the Texas players and coaches by surprise. After the game, Porter Brown explained that, “we had a scouting report from last year and he came out a completely different pitcher,” David Pierce also made note of Smith’s improvements stating, “we’ve got on him 93-95… and he’s pumping 96-97 so he’s gotten bigger and stronger and he’s a good pitcher.”
Smith was more than a good pitcher tonight. He was dominant and the exact opposite of a comfortable opening day at-bat. Smith made the Texas hitters look bad, but it’s safe to say that Smith will be one of the best arms that Texas sees this year.
Hagen Smith: 5 IP, 0 ER, 1 H, 8 K, 2 BB
THE ARMS
While Lucas Gordon may not have been punching people out with a 97 MPH fastball, he was every bit as good on the stat sheet. “What could you expect more from him than pitching five shutout… slider was outstanding,” said David Pierce.
Gordon’s new slider was a big point of interest tonight and it was instrumental in his success against a good lineup. Gordon threw the slider for a strike early in counts and as a putaway pitch late in counts. The slider got better for Gordon as the game went on and helped him out of some tough situations when his command was getting shaky.
Overall it was an excellent first start from Gordon that will give an already confident pitcher even more confidence going forward.
Gordon: 5 IP, 0 ER, 2 H, 6 K, 1 BB
Andre Duplantier was the other arm that stood out for the Horns tonight. Lucas Gordon described Duplantier’s outing as, “big time, it’s good to see him back to ‘Dre, proud of him.” As he usually does, Duplantier looked confident and in control on the mound. The fastball sat in the upper-80s and the slider was consistently put in good spots.
TAKEAWAYS
This was a close game against a quality opponent. There’s no shame in losing 3-2 on a night where Hagen Smith and Brady Tygart had their best stuff. Not many offenses in the country would have done much damage with the way those two players pitched for Arkansas tonight.
It will be interesting to see how the Horns’ offense responds tomorrow against a Missouri team with less raw talent on the mound.
Lucas Gordon’s effectiveness on the bump with the new slider against a strong offense was a big sign that he will be able to go toe-to-toe with opposing aces this season. The main concern would have to be the defense of Mitchell Daly. Daly misplayed a ball early in the game and had a bad throwing error on a routine play in the 9th inning. That has to be cleaned up.
UP NEXT
Texas (0-1) will take on Missouri (0-1) Saturday at 3. Zane Morehouse will be on the mound for Texas against another lefty, Ian Lohse making the start for the Tigers.
Winning Pitcher: Cody Adcock (1-0)
Losing Pitcher: Lebarron Johnson Jr (0-1)
BOX SCORE
RECAP
The Horns were finally back in action on Friday night at Globe Life Field. Texas faced a talented Arkansas team and ended up taking a 3-2 loss on opening day. The game was scoreless through six innings thanks to dominant starts from Lucas Gordon and Hagen Smith.
The Hogs began the 7th with a pair of singles against Lebarron Johnson Jr and were able to put three runs on the board when Chris Stuart came on in relief.
Stuart caught way too much plate with those pitches and Arkansas made him pay.
Texas immediately responded with a pair of runs in the bottom half of the frame, including this home run from outfielder Porter Brown on the 10th pitch of the at-bat.
Porter was down 0-2 and fouled off six pitches before homering. It very well could go down as the best at-bat of the year.
In the end, Texas was just 1-10 with runners on base while Arkansas went 4-16 in that same category. Those extra clutch hits were the difference in the game.
BIG MOMENT
Peyton Powell and Eric Kennedy each hit one-out singles in the 8th inning. These hits put the tying run in scoring position and prompted Dave Van Horn to bring in his closer, Brady Tygart. Texas had Dylan Campbell and Porter Brown set to hit, two of the best and most experienced hitters on the team. It was clear the game was likely going to be decided with those two plate appearances and it was. Tygart had 8 saves for the Razorbacks last year and was pumping a mid-90s fastball and a hammer of a breaking ball. Dylan Campbell went down swinging and Tygart followed up that punchout with another strikeout, this time of Porter Brown, to end the inning and the threat.
Texas could not have asked for two better guys to be at the plate in that situation. Tygart was just better tonight and came up huge in the big spot.
INDIVIDUAL PERFORMANCE TO NOTE
The sophomore lefty Hagen Smith was phenomenal for the Razorbacks on Friday. Smith was 94-97 with a fastball that exploded out of his hand and jumped on the UT hitters. Smith certainly looked like he made strides this offseason, so much so that he caught the Texas players and coaches by surprise. After the game, Porter Brown explained that, “we had a scouting report from last year and he came out a completely different pitcher,” David Pierce also made note of Smith’s improvements stating, “we’ve got on him 93-95… and he’s pumping 96-97 so he’s gotten bigger and stronger and he’s a good pitcher.”
Smith was more than a good pitcher tonight. He was dominant and the exact opposite of a comfortable opening day at-bat. Smith made the Texas hitters look bad, but it’s safe to say that Smith will be one of the best arms that Texas sees this year.
Hagen Smith: 5 IP, 0 ER, 1 H, 8 K, 2 BB
THE ARMS
While Lucas Gordon may not have been punching people out with a 97 MPH fastball, he was every bit as good on the stat sheet. “What could you expect more from him than pitching five shutout… slider was outstanding,” said David Pierce.
Gordon’s new slider was a big point of interest tonight and it was instrumental in his success against a good lineup. Gordon threw the slider for a strike early in counts and as a putaway pitch late in counts. The slider got better for Gordon as the game went on and helped him out of some tough situations when his command was getting shaky.
Overall it was an excellent first start from Gordon that will give an already confident pitcher even more confidence going forward.
Gordon: 5 IP, 0 ER, 2 H, 6 K, 1 BB
Andre Duplantier was the other arm that stood out for the Horns tonight. Lucas Gordon described Duplantier’s outing as, “big time, it’s good to see him back to ‘Dre, proud of him.” As he usually does, Duplantier looked confident and in control on the mound. The fastball sat in the upper-80s and the slider was consistently put in good spots.
TAKEAWAYS
This was a close game against a quality opponent. There’s no shame in losing 3-2 on a night where Hagen Smith and Brady Tygart had their best stuff. Not many offenses in the country would have done much damage with the way those two players pitched for Arkansas tonight.
It will be interesting to see how the Horns’ offense responds tomorrow against a Missouri team with less raw talent on the mound.
Lucas Gordon’s effectiveness on the bump with the new slider against a strong offense was a big sign that he will be able to go toe-to-toe with opposing aces this season. The main concern would have to be the defense of Mitchell Daly. Daly misplayed a ball early in the game and had a bad throwing error on a routine play in the 9th inning. That has to be cleaned up.
UP NEXT
Texas (0-1) will take on Missouri (0-1) Saturday at 3. Zane Morehouse will be on the mound for Texas against another lefty, Ian Lohse making the start for the Tigers.
