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As a young coach in his first season at Watson Chapel, J Keith was mesmerized by all of the scouts who came by the school to see his star pitcher.
It didn’t matter if Markevian “Tink” Hence was pitching in an actual game, throwing in a practice or just stretching before a game in which he wouldn’t pitch, professional scouts came to south Arkansas in droves to see the hard-throwing right-hander.
“It was like a movie,” Keith said. “First game of the year, it’s cold and there were 18 scouts behind home plate. Every time he throws anything, they have a radar gun up.”
Armed with a fastball that already touches 96 miles per hour and a frame (6-1, 172) that projects additional velocity as he gets older and stronger, it’s easy to see why professional scouts are drooling over the Arkansas signee.
Ranked the No. 60 overall player in the Class of 2020 by Perfect Game, Hence has a decision looming. In addition to being a part of the Razorbacks’ highly touted signing class, he is also widely considered a top prospect for this summer’s MLB Draft.
MLB Pipeline ranks him 85th on its list of the top 150 draft prospects, while Baseball America has him ranked 121st. Even if the draft is shortened to five rounds, Hence figures to have an opportunity to skip college and go pro if he chooses that route.
“As a family, we sit down and talk about it because we know it’s going to be a tough decision,” Hence said. “At the end of the day, we’re just going to have to figure out which choice is going to be the best for my career.”
Those conversations were going to happen regardless, but Hence and his family have nothing but time now thanks to the coronavirus pandemic ending his senior year much earlier than expected.
Watson Chapel was just five games into its 2020 slate when the Arkansas Activities Association suspended and ultimately canceled the season. It was a disappointing finish to what was going to be one last shot at redemption for losing a heart-breaker to Sylvan Hills in the 2018 state title.
“It was real tough for me because I was a senior and we had a chance to win a state championship,” Hence said. “In 10th grade, we came up short, so our main goal this year was to at least make it to state and try to win it.”
