Hogs’ baseball adds pledge from former SEC outfielder

Arkansas baseball added a commitment from outfielder Justin Thomas for the 2025 recruiting class when he announced his pledge last Friday. 

As a freshman at Georgia, Thomas played in 25 games with 8 starts for the 29-27 Bulldogs.

He batted .193 average with 1 double, 1 home run and 5 RBI, plus stole 3 bases in 4 attempts. He did not commit an error in the field and recorded 22 putouts and 1 assist in 23 total chances. 

Thomas was a two-sport athlete at Benedictine Military in Savannah, Ga., where he was named the 2022 Savannah Morning News Baseball Player of the Year after helping the Cadets to a 30-8 mark and to the Class 4A state semifinals. 

He hit for a .517 average with a school-record 16 home runs as a senior when he recorded 60 hits, 13 doubles, 5 triples and 53 RBI, and scored 71 runs. 

Thomas earned All-Region and All-State honors on the gridiron with 39 touchdowns and more than 2,393 all-purpose yards.

He will play the 2024 season for Florida SouthWestern State College in Fort Myers, Fla., where former Razorback Cullen Smith is in his first season on the Bucs' coaching staff. 

Following his playing career, Smith spent two seasons on staff of Arkansas coach Van Horn as a student assistant coach and helped the Hogs to a pair of NCAA Tournament appearances, including a trip to the College World Series in 2022.