FAYETTEVILLE — Arkansas baseball added the eighth member of its 2021 recruiting class Sunday afternoon.
Dylan Leach (5-11, 175), a catcher/third baseman from Carthage, Texas, committed to Dave Van Horn and the Razorbacks, becoming the second 2021 prospect to pledge in as many days. Catcher Cooper Oliphant of Sheridan also committed on Saturday.
Leach said he attended a game at Baum Stadium this spring and was taken aback by the atmosphere and fan support. Since then, he's developed a strong relationship with hitting coach Nate Thompson and Van Horn, which led to his decision.
"I went up to Fayetteville for their prospect camp and coach Van Horn was an amazing guy," Leach said. "I said, 'This is where I want to go.' It was unreal. It was like, 'This is really happening.' Then it hit me."
Leach, a sophomore switch hitter, received his first Division I offer from Louisiana-Lafayette on June 9 and, in late July, he picked up offers from Arkansas and TCU over a four-day span.
As a freshman at Carthage, Leach was a 2018 Tyler Morning Telegraph All-East Texas baseball team honorable mention after starting each game at shortstop. He runs a 7.36 second 60-yard dash, according to Prep Baseball Report, and his pop time has been clocked between 1.85-1.95 seconds, he said.
Leach said he batted .350 in district play last season and around .400 in postseason play. He also led his summer league team in triples, doubles, batting average and on-base percentage.
"I wanted to be the dude and go in and start," Leach said of his freshman season. "That was my goal since I was a little kid, to go in and start on varsity as a freshman. I went in there and showed out from Day 1 and showed them I could be the dude. They gave me the chance and I took off with it."
Leach said he received lots of congratulations from friends and classmates at school on Monday.
"I still have three more years left of high school and more time to progress and get better," said Leach, who threw out more than 50 percent of would-be basestealers this summer. "I'm really working on catching, getting my feet faster, my throws better and becoming more accurate and hitting the ball the other way, mainly."
Verbal commitments are not binding.