Diamond Hogs freshman transfers to Big 12 school
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Another member of Arkansas baseball’s 2020 signing class has left the program after just one semester.
Jackson Cobb announced Monday night that he is heading to Texas Tech. The infielder out of Texarkana, Texas, joins Michael Brooks and Clayton Gray as freshmen who have transferred since the conclusion of fall ball.
This is not an uncommon occurrence in college baseball this time of year.
There are always transfers following the fall semester as playing time and depth chart positioning for the upcoming season becomes clearer. It was especially expected this year because of the roster crunch facing the sport.
Thanks to the coronavirus eligibility relief granted by the NCAA and the shortened MLB Draft, Arkansas had 52 players on its fall roster - one of the highest totals during head coach Dave Van Horn’s tenure.
Although he didn’t mention any names, Van Horn said last month that there would likely be some players move on and indicated they would be mutual decisions.
“It’s usually a good two-way conversation talking about what’s best for the individual and then best for our team, what we see in the future, obviously what we see this spring and playing time,” Van Horn said. “A lot of times it boils down to what does this individual need to work on.”
A standout two-sport athlete at Pleasant Grove High in Texarkana, Cobb was recruited to play both football and baseball at a handful of Division II programs before deciding his future was on the diamond.
Cobb’s first Division I offer was from Sun Belt power Louisiana-Lafayette and he quickly committed. Two years later, though, Arkansas entered the picture and he flipped his pledge to the Razorbacks.
Despite a torn ACL suffered in the first football game of his senior year, Cobb rehabbed and was on the baseball field five and a half months after his surgery. In just five games before the coronavirus pandemic ended cut the season short, he hit .563 with four home runs.
Before his injury, Cobb also showcased excellent speed with a state-record 11 triples and school-record 26 stolen bases as a junior, when he also posted a .398 batting average and .527 on-base percentage.
However, he struggled once he arrived in Fayetteville. In the six-game intrasquad Fall World Series, Cobb went 2 for 13 (.154) with three RBIs and four walks. Both of his hits went for extra bases, with one double and one home run, but he also struck out seven times.
Playing time would have likely been tough to come by this season, as Cobb was a designated hitter in those six scrimmages and seemingly behind not only projected starters Jalen Battles and Robert Moore, but also fellow freshman Ethan Bates.
Texas Tech has become a common landing spot for Razorbacks.
A couple of years ago, Easton Murrell and Bryce Bonnin decided to transfer to the Big 12 program after playing on Arkansas’ national runner-up team in 2018.
Bonnin was a weekend starter for the Red Raiders before becoming a third-round pick in this summer’s MLB Draft, while Murrell played sparingly in 2019 but hit a clutch home run to help beat his former team in the 2019 College World Series.
As for the other 2020 signees who have left the program, Gray is heading to Crowder C.C., according to a source, while Brooks told HawgBeat he was exploring DI and JUCO opportunities.
Bryce Matthews, a true freshman on last spring’s team, also entered the transfer portal after the end of fall ball. His destination is unknown.
