FAYETTEVILLE — Former Arkansas baseball player Bubba Carpenter will join the Razorbacks' radio broadcasts this season, replacing longtime color analyst Rick Schaeffer.
Carpenter, who played at Arkansas from 1988-91, was a three-time All-Southwest Conference outfielder for the Razorbacks. He was a member of three SWC championship teams at Arkansas, including the one that made it to the College World Series in 1989.
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Carpenter later spent 13 years in minor league baseball and briefly made the Colorado Rockies MLB team in 2000. He was inducted into the UA Sports Hall of Honor in 2010.
“I am excited for this opportunity,” Carpenter said in a statement. “I’ve been a Razorback fan since I was a little boy when my dad started taking me to George Cole Field and to have this opportunity to call games on the radio for the Razorbacks is something I’m really looking forward to.”
Carpenter will work alongside Arkansas play-by-play voice Phil Elson on home broadcasts. Carpenter is not expected travel to the Razorbacks' away games.
Elson addressed the change on his Twitter account Thursday.
"(Carpenter will) add a lot from a new perspective for our broadcasts," Elson wrote. "He’s played everywhere & knows the game. Although I’ve only begun getting to know him it’s obvious he has a fun personality that will shine through.
"I’ll also miss working with Rick Schaeffer. Truth is you won’t find two people more different than we two. However we developed a good rapport on air and had a lot of fun. We also became friends on and off the air, and I’ll value that always."
Schaeffer had spent the past 17 seasons as Arkansas' color analyst and spent 19 seasons overall in the booth with Elson and former play-by-play voice Chuck Barrett.
"I'm happy for Bubba Carpenter," Schaeffer said. "Bubba is a great Razorback and I wish him well."