Diamond Hogs Host No. 19 Kentucky

Arkansas Razorbacks (25-9, 6-6)

vs.

Kentucky Wildcats (25-8, 7-5)

Baum Stadium • Fayetteville, Ark.

Radio: Razorback Baseball Radio Network

Live Stats: Hogwired.com

Live Video: RazorZone

Series Outlook

Game 35: #19 Kentucky at #12 Arkansas

Friday, April 14, 7:05 p.m. – Baum Stadium

Probable Starting Pitchers

UA: 33 Nick Schmidt, LHP (6-2, 1.91 ERA)

UK: 30 Aaron Tennyson, LHP (4-1, 3.38 ERA)

Game 36: #19 Kentucky at #12 Arkansas

Saturday, April 15, 4:05 p.m. – Baum Stadium

Probable Starting Pitchers

UA: 7 Trey Holloway, LHP (3-0, 3.34 ERA)

UK: 23 Craig Snipp, LHP (4-2, 2.09 ERA)

Game 37: #19 Kentucky at #12 Arkansas

Sunday, April 16, 12:35 p.m. – Baum Stadium

Probable Starting Pitchers

UA: 34 Shaun Seibert, RHP (2-0, 1.50 ERA)

UK: 37 Greg Dombrowski, RHP (6-1, 1.75 ERA)

Diamond Hogs Host No. 19 Kentucky

No. 12 Arkansas returns home after a four-game road trip for a three-game SEC Series with No. 19 Kentucky at Baum Stadium this weekend. The series gets started at 7:05 p.m. Friday with Saturday’s contest slated for 4:05 p.m. and the series finale set for 12:35 p.m. Sunday.

The Razorbacks are 25-9 overall and tied for third in the SEC West with a 6-6 record. The Wildcats are 25-8 on the season and third in the SEC East with a 7-5 mark in league play.

The Razorback Baseball Radio Network will carry all three games with Chuck Barrett and Rick Schaeffer calling the action. RazorZone will also have live audio of all three games and a live webcast of the Friday and Sunday games.

The Hogs’ lefty Nick Schmidt will return to his Friday night spot in the rotation after picking up a 5-3 win at No. 16 Vanderbilt last weekend. Schmidt is 6-2 on the season with a 1.91 ERA in 61.1 innings of work. Kentucky will counter with senior left-hander Aaron Tennyson, who is 4-1 on the season with a 3.38 ERA. Tennyson has thrown four innings in two career appearances against UA, allowing six runs – five earned – on eight hits.

Saturday will pit Arkansas senior Trey Holloway against the Wildcats senior Craig Snipp. Holloway is 3-0 on the season with a 3.34 ERA, including a 2-0 mark in league play. Snipp is 4-2 with a 2.09 ERA and has faced the Razorbacks twice previously, allowing four runs on seven hits in three innings.

Shaun Seibert will get his first SEC start of the season on Sunday. He is 2-0 with a 1.50 ERA in 30 innings. Kentucky will send sophomore right-hander Greg Dombrowski (6-1) to the mound. His 1.75 ERA is the second best in the SEC.

Arkansas leads the all-time series with the Wildcats 25-15 after UK took two-of-three games last season in Lexington. The Hogs own a 13-5 edge in games played in Fayetteville, including a series sweep in 2004.

The Razorbacks enter the series with a .287 batting average while scoring 6.6 runs per game. The pitching staff boasts a 3.29 ERA. Kentucky is hitting .301 with a 3.04 ERA on the mound.

Scouting the Wildcats

Kentucky is ranked 19th by Baseball America entering this weekend’s SEC showdown in Fayetteville. They boast a 25-8 overall record and a 7-5 mark in conference play. UK is third in the SEC’s Eastern Division. Head coach John Cohen is in his third season with the Wildcats and has a career record at Kentucky of 78-65.

Kentucky’s high-powered lineup leads the SEC with 48 home runs. The Wildcats have a .301-team batting average that ranks fourth in the SEC. Antone DeJesus is the catalyst for the Cats with a .369 batting average, 20 RBI and seven stolen bases. First baseman Ryan Strieby provides the power with eight home runs and 41 RBI. His 41 RBI are tied for the second-most in the SEC. Collin Cowgill has also shown some pop in his bat with a .327 batting average and eight home runs. John Shelby, who killed the Hogs in Lexington last season, is hitting just .238 but has eight home runs and 31 RBI.

The Cats pitching also ranks fourth in the conference with a 3.04-team ERA. The weekend rotation of left-handers Aaron Tennyson and Craig Snipp on Friday and Saturday along with right-hander Greg Dombrowski on Sunday has proven to be a potent attack. Tennyson is 4-1 on the season with a 3.38 ERA while Snipp is 4-2 with a 2.09 ERA and a team-best 50 strikeouts. Dombrowski has been the Wildcats ace. He is 6-1 on Sunday’s with a 1.75 ERA that ranks second in the SEC. Brock Barber serves as the UK closer with four saves in 15 appearances and a 1.90 ERA.

Kentucky’s fielding percentage of .968 also ranks fourth in the league. The Wildcats have turned the third-most double plays in the SEC with 35.

The Series: Arkansas leads the all-time series with the Wildcats 25-15 after UK took two-of-three games last season in Lexington. The Hogs own a 13-5 edge in games played in Fayetteville, including a series sweep in 2004.

A Look at the Razorbacks’ Rotation

Friday – Nick Schmidt, LHP (6-2, 1.91 ERA) – Schmidt won his sixth game of the season last Saturday at Vanderbilt. He worked eight innings, allowing three runs and a season-high 10 hits. He did strike out 10 for his fourth straight double-digit strike out performance Schmidt had tossed his first complete game of the year the week prior against Tennessee and struck out 11. Schmidt has fanned 45 batters in 30.2 innings over his four SEC starts, including a career-high 13 against Georgia. He does have four wins over ranked opponents this season (TCU, Hawai’i, Tennessee and Vanderbilt). Schmidt allowed his first three hits of the 2006 season against Louisiana Tech on Feb. 24 in the second game of a doubleheader with the Bulldogs. He tossed 13.2 hitless innings to open the season. Opposing hitters are now hitting .178 off Schmidt this season in 61.1 innings.

Saturday – Trey Holloway, LHP (3-0, 3.34 ERA) – Holloway has been solid in his four starts in SEC play this season. The left-hander won his third game of the season last week with six innings of work against Vanderbilt. He threw a career-high seven innings against the Georgia on March 26, allowing just one run on four hits. He made his first start in almost two years on short notice against Florida on Saturday, March 18. Holloway earned a 3-2 win over No. 13 Gators. He threw 5.1 innings, allowing just two runs on a home run by Gavin Dickey. He did not walk a batter and gave up just four hits.

Sunday – Shaun Seibert (2-0, 1.50 ERA) – Seibert will make his fourth start of the season on Sunday. He is coming off of an impressive five-inning start at Missouri State on Tuesday. Seibert allowed just one unearned run on three hits while striking out five. The sophomore from Edwardsville, Ill., is 2-0 on the season with a 1.50 ERA. He has made 10appearances this season and pitched 30 innings. He has a 1.50 ERA with 33 strikeouts and just nine walks this season.

Seibert made starts against Louisiana Tech and Texas-Arlington in Hawai’i. He did not allow a run to Louisiana Tech and just two runs to UTA. He pitched five innings in both starts.

MSU was 2,800th Game in Diamond Hogs History

Arkansas played its 2,800th game in the history of the program on Tuesday night in Springfield. The Razorbacks have a all-time record of 1,697-1,097-6 (.607) in 84 years of college baseball.

Hogs Battling Injuries Once Again

The Hogs’ training room has looked like a MASH unit over the past couple of weeks. Ben Tschepikow and James Ewing have left the chores at second base up to outfielder Stephen Robison and freshman Logan Forsythe.

Tschepikow underwent back surgery on Thursday, March 30, and is out for the remainder of the season while Ewing is sidelined with a stress fracture in his foot. He will not return until at least the Mississippi State series.

RHP Josh Smith will also miss the entire season after undergoing back surgery earlier this spring. RHP Justin White has retired from baseball after suffering numerous elbow and shoulder injuries over the past two seasons.

Razorback Notebook

• No. 12 Arkansas used clutch hitting and strong pitching to win two-of-three games at No. 16 Vanderbilt this weekend

• The Razorbacks are 25-9 on the season and have evened their record in the Southeastern Conference at 6-6. Arkansas is tied for third in the SEC West.

• Arkansas is now 9-6 this season against ranked teams and have won its last two SEC series (Tennessee and Vanderbilt). The Hogs improved to 22-10 all time against the Commodores and 9-3 in head coach Dave Van Horn’s tenure.

• Vanderbilt’s David Price was masterful on Friday night in Nashville with 17 strikeouts over eight innings in a 7-1 Commodores’ win. Jake Dugger connected for his seventh home run of the season off Price in the second inning for the Razorbacks’ only run.

• Charley Boyce continued his struggles on the mound, allowing five earned runs in one-plus inning of work. He will move to the bullpen this week.

• The Hogs’ bullpen was impressive in relief of Boyce on Fridya night as Shaun Seibert, Brett Bollman and Michael Wild threw seven-scoreless innings.

• Seibert then started and pitched five innings at Missouri State on Tuesday, April 11. He struck out five, allowed one unearned run and walked one.

• Nick Schmidt improved to 6-2 on the season Saturday with eight-strong innings … he allowed three runs on nine hits and struck out 10. He has now recorded four straight double-digit strikeout performances.

• Schmidt has 77 Ks in 61.1 innings this season and 45 strikeouts in SEC play. He had 89 strikeouts in 99.1 innings last season.

• Brian Walker provided the heroics in the top of the ninth inning Saturday with the game knotted at 3-3 the left-handed-hitting catcher led-off the inning with a solo home run over the right-field wall. It was his second home run of the season. Hamblin finished the day 3-for-5 with a double and two RBI, snapping out of a 0-for-10 slump.

• Devin Collis recorded the final two outs on Saturday for his fifth save of the season.

• Arkansas won the series on Sunday with a monstrous fifth-inning grand slam by Hamblin that provided the Hogs with a 4-3 win. He now has an SEC-best 46 RBI on the season, just three shy of his career high of 49.

• Trey Holloway improved to 3-0 on the season Sunday with six innings of work. He allowed three runs on five hits while striking out two and walking one. Two of his wins have come in SEC play.

• Chris Rhoads pitched the final three innings to earn his third save of the season. He gave up two hits, struck out three and walked one.

• Dugger extended his season-high hitting streak to eight on Tuesday.

• Chris Hollensworth continues to lead the Hogs with a .360 batting average and 14 doubles.

• Hamblin’s Sunday grand slam was his ninth home run of the season. • Dugger hit .333 for the week with two home runs, three RBI, a .733 slugging percentage and a .412 on-base percentage.

Rhoads Thriving in Bullpen Role

Chris Rhoads has taken to his new role out of the bullpen with three saves in nine relief appearances. He has allowed just two earned runs in 18.1 innings out of the bullpen while striking out striking out 15. He is 3-2 on the season with 31 Ks in 37.0 innings.

OPS Becoming Telling Stat

OPS or on-base percentage plus slugging percentage has become a popular way of better using statistics to identify a players true productivity at the plate. The following is a quick look at Arkansas’ top hitters according to OPS.

Player Slugging % On-Base % OPS

Jake Dugger .595 .440 1.035

Chris Hollensworth .558 .438 .996

James Ewing .436 .485 .991

Craig Gentry .549 .421 .970

Danny Hamblin .561 .382 .943

Newcomers Shining for Hogs

Several newcomers have stepped into the everyday lineup and pitching rotation to help Arkansas open with a 21-5 record.

Redshirt freshman Matt Willard made the most of his redshirt season and has come out smoking in year two. The Newtown, Pa., native is hitting .347 with three doubles, a home run and 11 RBI.

David Hum and Wayne Hrozek have shared the DH duties in 2006. Hum has 16 starts and a .288 batting average while Hrozek is hitting .309 in 14 starts.

Junior college transfer Chris Rhoads has thrown quality innings for the Hogs’ as a starter early in the season and now out of the bullpen. The right-hander is 3-2 with a 2.43 ERA and three saves in 37.0 innings of work.

Logan Forsythe had his redshirt pulled this past week, starting the Hogs’ last 13 games. He is hitting .174 (8 for 46) with three home runs, a double and a walk.

James Ewing, a true freshman from Beaumont, Texas, has flourished early in his Razorback career. He is leading the team with a .382 batting average. Ewing has won the everyday job at second base. He has three doubles and 10 RBI. He will miss the next several weeks with a fractured foot.

Hog Bats Sluggish on SEC-Friday Nights

Arkansas has struggled at the plate on Friday nights during SEC play this season. The Razorbacks’ lineup is batting an anemic .167 while averaging just 2.5 runs per game. That stretch includes losses to Florida (6-3), Georgia (2-0) and Vanderbilt (7-1). The Hogs best Friday night of the season came against Tennessee with a 6-1 win. Vanderbilt’s David Price was the last hurler to baffle the Razorbacks’ lineup. Considered the best pitcher in the country, Price held Arkansas to three hits over eight innings and struck out 17.

Schmidt Becoming Household Name

Sophomore left-hander Nick Schmidt is quickly becoming a household name in college baseball. The St. Louis native, had the country buzzing after opening the season with 13.2 hitless innings that included a combined no-hitter against traditional-power Oklahoma State.

Schmidt has allowed just 33 hits and nine earned runs in 61.2 innings of work this season. That translates to a 1.91 ERA and a .178 opponent batting average. He has 77 strikeouts, including four straight double-digit strikeout performances and five overall (10 vs. La. Tech, 11 at Florida, 13 vs. Georgia, 11 vs. Tennessee & 10 at Vanderbilt).

His 13 strikeout performance against Georgia was a career best and the most by a Arkansas pitcher since Denny Walling fanned 14 against South Carolina on May 16, 1999.

Boyce Climbing Up Arkansas’ Record Books

Charley Boyce is climbing up the Arkansas record books each time he takes the field. The senior from Broken Arrow, Okla., is the school’s all-time leader in career starts with 54.

He is just 3.1 innings shy of Scott Tabor’s school record of 368 innings pitched. Boyce has thrown 364.2 innings in his Razorback career. Boyce is second in career victories (29) and third in career appearances (754). He is also tied for ninth in career strikeouts with 219.

His sophomore and junior seasons also rank as some of the best in school history. Boyce’s 11 wins last season are tied for the third-most in a single season, while his 10 victories in 2004 are tied for eighth. His 19 starts in 2004 are tied for the most in school history. Boyce’s 122.1 innings in 2005 are the second-most in a single season in school history, while his 115.1 innings in 2004 rank eighth.

Gentry Sparking the Hogs’ Offense

Arkansas senior center fielder Craig Gentry has been one of the most reliable bats in the Hog’s lineup this season. He is hitting .330 with three home runs, seven doubles and 14 RBI. Gentry missed 10 starts earlier in the season with a broken hand but immediately stepped back into the lineup and produced. Hit two home runs against Tennessee, including a walk-off two-run shot on April 2. He is also second on the team and tied for seventh in the SEC with 10 stolen bases.

Arkansas Running Wild Again This Season

Dave Van Horn’s Razorbacks are up to their old tricks again this season. Arkansas has swiped 56 bases in 80 attempts for an average of 1.65 per contest. UA was second in the SEC a year ago with 108 stolen bases after leading the league in 2004 with 112 pilfers. The school record for stolen bases in a season is 155 set in 1983. The Hogs would need to average 2.77 stolen bases per game in a 56-game regular season to surpass the 1983 club.

David Hum Named SEC Freshman of the Week

Arkansas freshman designated hitter David Hum was named the SEC Freshman of the Week on Monday after hitting three home runs in two starts against Tennessee last weekend at Baum Stadium.

The Little Rock native and graduate of Catholic High School finished the series with a .500 (4 for 8) batting average and four RBI. He slugged 1.625 and posted a .556 on-base percentage.

Hum went 2 for 3 on Saturday with his first career home run. He also singled and drew a walk against the Vols starter Craig Cobb.

Hum followed that up on Sunday with two home runs and a career-best three RBI. He is the third Razorback this season to hit two home runs in a game. Hum has started 14 games this season and is hitting .275 with two doubles and eight RBI to go along with his three home runs.

Road Warriors

The Razorbacks have bucked the trend in the SEC and hit the road throughout the 2006 non-conference slate. Arkansas beat No. 16 Vanderbilt in Nashville twice over the weekend to improve to 14-5 away from home this season. UA has played 19 of its 34 games on the road this season. The Hogs are 7-4 in true road games and 7-1 in neutral site games way from Baum Stadium.

Tough to Beat Out of Conference

The Razorbacks have been nearly unbeatable in non-conference action in head coach Dave Van Horn’s four-year tenure and even tougher over the past two seasons. Arkansas is 81-13 (.862) in regular-season non-conference games since Van Horn arrived in 2003 and 43-3 (.935) since the beginning of the 2005 season.

Arkansas has been even better at home with a 50-4 (926) mark in non-conference games since 2003 and 21-1 at home in non-conference game since the start of 2005.

Ewing X2

Arkansas’ James Ewing in not the only freshman named Ewing to be making a splash on the college baseball scene in his rookie campaign. James has an identical-twin brother, Michael, who is starting at first base for the Southern Miss Golden Eagles.

James, UA’s starting second baseman, is leading the Hogs in hitting with a .382 batting average while driving in 10 runs and collecting three doubles.

Michael is hitting .307 for Southern Miss with two home runs and 12 RBI in 20 starts.

James is out until at the very least the Vanderbilt series with a stress fracture in his foot.

The Combined No-Hitter

Nick Schmidt, Brian McLelland and Devin Collis combined for the 12th no-hitter in Arkansas history on Saturday, Feb. 11, against Oklahoma State in the Jaguar Invitational in Mobile, Ala.

Schmidt threw the first six innings before McLelland came on to hold OSU hitless for a frame. Collis carved up the Cowboys over the final two innings. It marked the first time in 71-recorded years of OSU baseball that the Cowboys had been held hitless in a nine-inning game.

The no-hitter was the first for Arkansas since Scott Roehl’s no-no against Kansas State on March 20, 2001, in Shreveport, La. It was the first combined no-hitter since Brian Cook and Brian Dennison teamed up to hold Evangel without a hit on April 2, 1991. More on all 12 Arkansas no-hitters can be found on page 116 of your 2006 Razorback baseball media guide.

Schmidt Pro-Line Cap National Pitcher of the Week

Nick Schmidt added to his long list of honors on Tuesday, Feb. 14, when the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) named the Arkansas left-hander the Pro-Line Cap National Pitcher of the Week. He also captured SEC Pitcher of the Week honors for his efforts. The sophomore from St. Louis, Mo., started and pitched the first six innings of the 12th no-hitter in school history against Oklahoma State. He struck out six and walked three on 87 pitches. It was the first time in 71 years of recorded baseball at Oklahoma State that the Cowboys had been held without a hit in a nine-inning game. Schmidt was also recognized as the national pitcher of week by RosenblattReport.com.

RazorZone to Feature Live Webcast

Friday and Sunday’s games with No. 19 Kentucky will be webcast live in the RazorZone. The video board feed normally reserved for in-house televisions and suite holders will be streamed in the RazorZone at Hogwired.com. All home games that do not conflict with televised games or the SEC Game of the Week on FSN will be streamed on RazorZone. There will also be selected road games at Florida and LSU that can been seen on the RazorZone. The RazorZone is a subscription package ($9.95 a month) through Hogwired.com that features live audio, video and special features of Razorback athletics.

Live Stats on Hogwired.com

New and improved live stats for Razorback baseball games are available to everyone on Hogwired.com this season. Up-to-the-minute scoring, boxscores and play-by-plays can be found under the ‘Live Stats’ link on the left side of the Hogwired.com homepage. Once in the live stats page click on the camera icon next to the event you want to follow.

Hogs Post 3.15-Team GPA During Fall Semester

The Arkansas baseball team proved they were truly student-athletes during the 2005 fall semester with an impressive 3.15-team grade point average.

The 3.15-team GPA was the highest of any male team on campus with 26 of 41 players earning a 3.0 or better GPA. Razorback position players compiled a 3.27 GPA, while the pitching staff put together a 3.0 GPA during the fall.

Senior right-handed pitcher Charley Boyce and former shortstop Scott Hode received their degrees in December, while Trey Holloway and Josh Smith are scheduled to graduate in May.

Two Hogs, freshmen Taylor Ardoin and Brad Secrist, earned perfect 4.0 GPAs during the fall. Eleven Razorbacks posted GPAs of 3.5 or better during the fall, including Brian Walker (3.91), Thomas Hauskey (3.86), Lee Land (3.83), Brandon Barr (3.83), Brian McLelland (3.82), Hunter London (3.75), Trey Holloway (3.69), Jake Dugger (3.60), Shaun Seibert (3.60), James Ewing (3.60) and Danny Hamblin (3.53).

Hum Granted Release

Freshman transfer David Hum was granted his release by Notre Dame on Wednesday, Feb. 22, and cleared to play two days later. Hum made his first appearance in a Razorback uniform in the second game of a doubleheader with Louisiana Tech on Friday, Feb. 24.

Razorbacks Pick Captains for 2005

The Razorbacks selected their 2006 captains by a vote of the team prior to the start of the season. Senior pitcher Charley Boyce, junior first baseman Danny Hamblin and sophomore catcher Brian Walker were chosen to represent the Razorbacks this season.

Player Number Corrections From Media Guide

There are a few numbers changes from your 2006 Arkansas baseball media guide. The new numbers are reflected on the roster page on page seven of this notes package. The corrected numbers are #30 Chris Rhoads, #37 Tommy McClain, #40 Brett Bollman, #43 Hunter London and #44 Brad Secrist.

Download: Kentucky Release.pdf