The Arkansas baseball program has added to its future haul with the pledge of 2023 Harding Academy standout Kade Smith.
Smith (6-0, 185) pitched and played third base for the Class 4A state champion Wildcats. He is coming to Fayetteville as a two-way player and becomes the Razorbacks’ 14th commit for 2023.
Smith, who also played for Harding’s state champion football and basketball squads, was 9-0 with a 1.23 ERA and 77 strikeouts in 45 1/3 innings on the mound as a sophomore.
He also hit .544 with 5 homers, 27 RBI and 12 stolen bases.
“To me, it is all about where your heart wants to go, not about the scholarship money or anything else, and ever since I have been a kid all I have been working for is to become a Hog one day, and my dream and all my hard work paid off,” Smith said.
Smith fanned 8 and allowed 1 run on 4 hits as the winning pitcher for Harding Academy (24-5) in its 8-1 state championship game win over Walnut Ridge.
He committed to the Arkansas coaches Tuesday and went public with his decision Wednesday.
“They had called me and offered me two weeks ago and I called them back yesterday and told them I wanted to commit and play there,” Smith said. “They were really excited and told me they were excited for me to get there and help win more championships and get to Omaha again.
“It’s just been awesome to watch and to know that you are from a state that has a team that is representing so well and is just continuing to improve and get better every year.”
Harding Academy won its final 19 games en route to the title.
“We had a really good year and won state and we didn’t lose anybody on our baseball team,” Snith said. “We didn’t have any seniors, so hopefully are going to repeat next year, keep it going and keep winning.”
Smith hopes to flourish as a hitter and pitcher at Arkansas.
“That is how they offered me, to try and be a two-way player for them,” Smith said. “But I feel like if all else fails I think I would be a pitcher because I think that is what I am strongest at right now. I would love to be able to do both.”
Smith will become another Arkansas Prospects standout to join the SEC champions along with former Arkansas standout Casey Martin and current Razorbacks Ethan Bates, Jaxson Wiggins, Tyler Cacciatori and Cayden Wallace. Wallace was recently named a Freshman All-American.
Bryant’s Austin Ledbetter, Conway’s Cameron Leach and Little Rock Catholics’s Reese McWilliams and out-of-state prospects Issac Mitchell and Jordan Viars are all Arkansas signees or commits who have played with the Arkansas Prospects.
“I think it is the best place to be if you are a young prospect in Arkansas,” Smith said. “(Coach) Andy Menard does a great job of getting your name out there and getting it noticed by a lot of college coaches, even MLB coaches.
"You never know what is going to happen there.”