The lack of pitching was the story last year in a 26-29 season. The Arkansas baseball team is off to a fast start to 2017 thanks to a big improvement on the mound.
Two of the expected stalwarts are on the injured list, but the seven pitchers to have thrown in a 2-0 start have picked up the slack. Better than that, they have rarely missed the strike zone.
Keaton McKinney is done for the season with elbow surgery. Isaiah Campbell hasn't pitched yet with a sore triceps muscle in his pitching arm. Campbell won't go until next weekend and might be skipped then, too. Arkansas coach Dave Van Horn said it will depend on how the big right-hander feels after playing catch on Sunday.
Four pitchers filled up the strike zone in a 5-1 victory over Miami (Ohio) on Saturday. Dominic Taccolini, the second pitcher of the day, walked the lead-off batter in his third and final inning, the only walk by UA pitchers on the weekend.
Taccolini thought that might come up in the post-game meeting between new pitching coach Wes Johnson and the staff. It did not.
“I thought Coach Johnson might rib me a little,” Taccolini said. “I knew it was the only (walk). Hopefully, it's the only one for the weekend.”
Van Horn was pleased with the pitching. He's always focused on throwing strikes. The Hogs walked too many last season.
“We had a couple of guys today behind (in the count),” he said. “But they came back in most cases.
“I do think (Miami) has a veteran offense. They swing the bat. And they have some power. The first baseman (Ross Haffey) has as much power as anyone we'll see. The one he hit out, he really didn't get.”
Haffey's home run in the fourth off of UA starter Trevor Stephan has accounted for the only Miami run on the weekend. The Hogs romped 7-0 on Friday.
“He hit another one to the deepest part of the park and he hit some hard yesterday,” Van Horn said. “Overall, their approach early was to go the other way. Trevor adjusted and came in with some good pitches.”
Stephan, the 6-5 junior college transfer, got the win with four innings of three-hit work. He struck out five, mostly on a sharp breaker. He threw 43 strikes in his 61 pitches. Taccolini was 28 of 48. Weston Rogers was 6 of 10 and Cody Scroggins 11 of 12.
As far as Stephan, it was solid. But Van Horn said he's seen better of him in the fall and early this winter.
“He didn't have his best stuff, but he did have a good breaking ball,” Van Horn said. “He usually throws a little harder. His last outing before the start was just OK. He had been pretty good.”
The scoreboard radar gun had Stephan's fast ball between 90-92 mph. Van Horn chuckled a little about that. It was closer to right than Friday when it was 5-6 mph hot.
“If anything it was about one and a half low today,” Van Horn said. “Maybe we'll get it right tomorrow. Today, it was at least close.”
Stephen has been hitting 95 on scout's guns in the fall and in January scrimmages. He was excited for his first Baum Stadium start, impressed by the 9,021 in attendance. He played in front of a couple hundred in junior college.
“Incredible,” he said, noting catcher Grant Koch had to calm his nerves in the bullpen session before the game. “I'd never seen anything like it.”
Taccolini thanked fans for coming out after a tough season last year.
“It's awesome,” he said. “We expect good crowds here, but not 9,000 on opening weekend. It's good to see after last year we were down. It's very exciting. You get a big strikeout and the crowd roars.”
Taccolini, the senior dubbed “The Diesel” by Johnson, appears to be destined to pitch in relief this year. He started 26 of 32 appearances the last two seasons and all but two last year.
“I'm in a bit of a different role this year,” he said. “I felt pretty good. I wasn't in the pen much last year.
“My fast ball was a little low to start the game, so I just aimed a little higher.”
But it isn't just about aim. It's about throwing hard under the new pitching coach.
“He wants us to be confident,” Taccolini said. “He wants good intent and to fill up the zone. He wants you to use your confidence and let your stuff work.”
So far, it's worked.