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Before ever throwing a pitch as a freshman in high school, Ross Felder fulfilled a lifelong dream by committing to play baseball at Arkansas.

A right-hander who will play for Springdale Har-Ber, he is the Razorbacks’ first commitment in the 2024 class. Felder announced his decision Sunday evening via Twitter.

Fresh off a solid performance in the 2020 WWBA Sophomore World Championship in Fort Myers, Fla., an event in which he played up an age group with the Arkansas Sticks travel ball club, Felder has also pitched internationally with the USA Baseball organization.

Although it is more common in baseball than football and basketball, it is still relatively uncommon to see players commit that early in their high school careers.

Since forming 2017, Chase Brewster said his Sticks organization has produced about 50 Arkansas baseball commitments - including players still in high school - spanning the 2017-24 classes. Felder is just the fifth of those to commit before his freshman season.

The first Sticks player to commit to Arkansas that early was Texarkana’s Braylon Bishop, a 2021 prospect who is considered a potential early first-round pick in next summer’s MLB Draft. The others are also in-state recruits: Colton Hoyt Sims from Russellville and Cooper Dossett from Springdale Har-Ber in the 2022 class and Kyler Spencer from Conway in the 2023 class.

To get a better feel for what kind of player the Razorbacks are getting, HawgBeat reached out to Brewster for a scouting report on Felder…

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(For a complete list of Arkansas’ baseball commitments in the 2021-24 classes, as well as updates, clips and links to other scouting reports on the recruits, click here.)

Position: Right-handed pitcher

School: Springdale Har-Ber HS

Height: 6-0 | Weight: 165 | B/T: R/R

Other offers/interest: Tennessee

Growing up just down the road from Fayetteville, Felder has attended camps at Arkansas as a sixth, seven and eighth grader, so the Razorbacks have been aware of him for several years.

The success he’s had on the international level with Team USA and at big events within the country’s borders, such as Perfect Game’s WWBA, has proven Felder is one of the top players in his class.

Brewster believes it was only a matter of time before other prominent programs took notice, as some - such as Tennessee - were already giving him a hard look, so it made sense the Razorbacks pulled the trigger with an early offer.