It has been more than seven months since Arkansas’ 2018 season came to a disappointing end in the College World Series finals against Oregon State.

Being one out away from winning a national championship has the excitement for the new season at an all-time high and fans will finally get to see the Razorbacks in action again Friday afternoon against Eastern Illinois.

Here is how our baseball expert, Andrew Hutchinson, sees the year playing out, plus a few predictions for the season…

Opening Weekend - vs. Eastern Illinois (Feb. 15-17)

There is a lot of excitement for baseball season considering last year’s success and the struggles of the football and men’s basketball programs. Fans are hungry for a winner and I think Arkansas feeds off that energy with an opening weekend sweep.

Record: 3-0

Week 2 - at USC (Feb. 21-23)

The Trojans are picked to finish ninth in the 11-team Pac-12, but this is a series I could see the Razorbacks losing. It will be the first time the new-look team hits the road and faces a power conference team. How will they handle the adversity? Ultimately, Dave Van Horn gives Arkansas the edge.

Record: 5-1

Week 3 - vs. Memphis (Feb. 27), vs. Stony Brook (March 1-3)

With only a few starters back from a team that finished 16 games under .500 last year, Memphis is picked at the bottom of the AAC. It should be a win for Arkansas and one in which some younger players get some experience.

Stony Brook is probably best known for its run to the College World Series in 2012, but it is a pretty solid program with a veteran coach in Matt Senk. This year’s team is led by preseason All-American shortstop Nick Grande. I don’t think they’ll have enough pitching to hang with the Razorbacks, though.

Record: 9-1

Week 4 - vs. Charlotte (March 5-6), vs. Louisiana Tech (March 8-10)

This is the week that will have casual fans freaking out and jumping ship. Charlotte is a middle-of-the-pack C-USA team, but it beat Arkansas in a midweek game last year. It wouldn’t be surprising to see the 49ers use one of their weekend pitchers because they don’t play again until Saturday and it’s against DI doormat Coppin State. I see the teams splitting the midweek series.

The Razorbacks don’t have the benefit of an easy weekend series after Charlotte. Louisiana Tech is picked second in C-USA, just behind Southern Miss. The Bulldogs are going to be very good this year and have a preseason all-conference pitcher in senior left-hander Logan Bailey. Had fellow senior left-hander David Leal not gone down with an injury, I’d feel even better about this pick, but I still think Louisiana Tech - which needs the wins to boost its resume - takes the series.

Record: 11-4

Week 5 - vs. Western Illinois (March 12-13), vs. Missouri (March 15-17)

Western Illinois shouldn’t offer much resistance and will give Arkansas a nice little confidence boost heading into conference play.

The Razorbacks benefit from playing mostly the bottom teams from the SEC East this season. Missouri is picked dead last in its division, so Arkansas should get off to a solid start to conference play. I hate predicting sweeps, because sweeps are hard even against bad SEC teams, but I’ll pick a 3-0 start.

Record: 16-4 (3-0)

Week 6 - at Texas (March 19-20), at Alabama (March 22-24)

It has been close to three decades since Arkansas and Texas were SWC rivals, but I get the sense there is some bad blood between the teams - especially from the Longhorns’ perspective. From Matt Cronin flashing the horns down sign, to Heston Kjerstad plowing over their first baseman, to beating them in the College World Series, they are probably ready for some revenge. I think they get it with a midweek sweep in Austin.

The Razorbacks will lick their wounds on the way to Tuscaloosa and take out their frustration on the lowly Crimson Tide, who are picked last in the SEC West. As much as I don’t like predicting sweeps at Baum-Walker Stadium, I definitely don’t like picking them on the road. With that in mind, I say Arkansas drops one game but wins the series.

Record: 18-7 (5-1)

Week 7 - at Missouri State (March 26), vs. Ole Miss (March 29-31)

There is also bad blood between Arkansas and Missouri State. The Bears are picked to win the Missouri Valley again, but aren’t receiving a ton of love in the preseason polls. I wouldn’t be surprised either way, but I think the Razorbacks find a way to win.

This is when SEC play heats up, as Ole Miss marks the first of four straight preseason top-20 teams on Arkansas’ conference slate. The difference between the Rebels and their first two SEC opponents could come as a shock to the Razorbacks. I have it circled as their first conference series loss in Fayetteville since Ole Miss took two of three late in April 2017.

Record: 20-9 (6-3)

Week 8 - vs. UALR (April 2), at Auburn (April 4-6)

I regret to inform you that the earth will be sucked into a black hole April 1, preventing Arkansas from ever playing an in-state program. Jokes aside, UALR will probably pull out all the stops to try to beat the Razorbacks, but I don’t think it will be enough.

Auburn has a legitimate ace in Tanner Burns and a core trio in its lineup similar to Arkansas’ in Edouard Julian (17 HR), Will Holland (12 HR) and Steven Williams (12 HR). With this series being on the road, I’m picking the Tigers to win two out of three.

Record: 22-11 (7-5)

Week 9 - vs. Oral Roberts (April 9), at Vanderbilt (April 12-14)

The midweek game with Oral Roberts marks the triumphant return of “Cowboy” Hunter Wilson and he should receive a nice ovation from the fans. I expect the Golden Eagles to be a challenge as the favorites in the Summit League yet again, but I’m picking Arkansas to win.

The SEC slide, however, will probably continue with a road trip to Vanderbilt. The Commodores are loaded and picked No. 1 or No. 2 in virtually every preseason poll. If the Razorbacks could steal just one of these games, It’d be a success. I’m picking a sweep, though.

Record: 23-14 (7-8)

Week 10 - vs. UAPB (April 16), vs. Mississippi State (April 18-20)

Much like the UALR game two weeks earlier, UAPB will probably do everything in its power to beat its in-state foe. In the end, the Golden Lions are a SWAC team Arkansas should beat playing with mostly backups.

Having lost three straight SEC series, the Razorbacks finally return to Baum-Walker Stadium to face a very good Mississippi State team. Not wanting to fall any further in the standings, Arkansas manages to win two to get back to .500 in conference play.

Record: 26-15 (9-9)

Week 11 - vs. Northwestern State (April 23-24), vs. Tennessee (April 26-28)

Van Horn welcomes his former team to his current home for the final midweek games at Baum-Stadium. Northwestern State is expected to be pretty good this year - picked third in the Southland - so it will probably be closer than the combined score of 23-4 when they visited in 2014, but I think Arkansas still sweeps the two-game series.

Another blast from the past comes to town that weekend, with former assistant Tony Vitello bringing his Tennessee team to Fayetteville. He inherited a massive rebuilding project and seems to be trending the right direction. With the games at home, though, I see the Razorbacks getting the best of their former coach.

Record: 30-16 (11-10)

Week 12 - vs. Grambling State (April 30 - NLR), at Kentucky (May 3-5)

In one of the most bizarre games in recent memory, Grambling State - with its No. 282 RPI - had Arkansas on the ropes. The Razorbacks struggled to get anything going against a steady rotation of pitchers with sky-high ERAs. It wasn’t until the Tigers put in their ace that they finally broke through and won. It will be interesting to see if Grambling uses the same strategy this year. Arkansas should be ready for it, though, and not have quite as much trouble as last year.

Another surprising result from last season - in a good way - was how soundly the Razorbacks beat Kentucky to open SEC play. They not only swept the Wildcats, but they demolished them by a combined score of 39-15 and hit 13 home runs. No doubt that left a sour taste in Kentucky’s mouth and it’ll be out for revenge, but I’m not convinced it’ll be enough. Arkansas finds a way to win a key series.

Record: 33-17 (13-11)

Week 13 - vs. LSU (May 9-11)

Some may compare Arkansas’ struggles against LSU to the football team’s struggles against Alabama. It’s easy to make that connection, but to me, it’s more similar to the Texas A&M football series. There have been times where the Razorbacks clearly seemed like the better team, but weird stuff happened and they end up losing in heartbreaking fashion. Until they prove me wrong, I’m picking LSU to win this series.

Record: 34-19 (14-13)

Week 14 - at Texas A&M (May 16-18)

While LSU clearly has Arkansas’ number, those roles are reversed for the Texas A&M series. Since the Aggies joined the conference, the Razorbacks have won five of the six series, including both in College Station. I’m sticking with that trend, meaning Arkansas will finish the regular season with an SEC record above .500.

Record: 36-20 (16-14)

Postseason Projection: No. 2 seed in Regional, Super Regional sleeper

With a couple wins in the SEC Tournament, Arkansas could work its way into the regional host picture. I don’t see it happening, though. Instead, the Razorbacks will hit the road for the postseason for the first time since 2015.

They will probably be a dangerous No. 2 seed that teams dread having in their regional and - depending on the matchup - could do some damage and advance to a super regional. Anything can happen at that point, but making it back to the College World Series will be a challenge for this year’s team. I see Arkansas’ season ending in a regional final or at a super regional.

Surprise All-SEC Selection: Casey Opitz

The Razorbacks led the conference with four preseason first-team All-SEC selections. Outside of those guys, I feel like Opitz has a great shot to have an all-conference caliber of season.

Van Horn has praised him as being one of the best catchers in the country in terms of receiving the ball and he has also been good at throwing out runners. At the plate, Opitz was solid in preseason scrimmages with a batting average above .300. He might not hit for that high of an average in the season, but he’ll still be solid - probably around .280. Although catchers aren’t typically thought of for their base runner, Opitz is excellent in that area. He’ll likely steal a few bases and make smart decisions on the base paths.

Not only that, but he has an advantage that former catcher Grant Koch never really had: A good backup Van Horn is comfortable playing. Each of the last two seasons, Koch started out the season looking like an All-American at the plate, but wore out because he caught more than 90 percent of the games. I expect Zack Plunkett to catch some this year to save Opitz’s legs, and even when he’s not catching, he could play first base, outfield or be the designated hitter.

Starting Rotation Prediction: Isaiah Campbell, Connor Noland, Jacob Kostyshock

This was much more of a bold prediction when I initially wrote it down Sunday. At that time, Campbell was the only known part of the rotation, with the other two spots up for grabs. Van Horn had mentioned Kole Ramage and Patrick Wicklander previously, so my prediction seemed bolder than it does now.

Even though those three will start against Eastern Illinois, I would not be surprised if several different guys get opportunities at some point of the season. I am sticking to that trio being the most frequently used rotation, though.

New Fan Favorite: Angus Denton

Many factors will go into Denton becoming a new fan favorite this season, starting with the fact his name is “Angus Denton.” (Although he is now listed on the UA website and in the media guide as Marshall Denton.) On top of his name, he is a side-arm pitcher, which is still kind of a novelty, and has the ability to pitch almost every day because of how quick his arm bounces back.

I also feel like he’s going to be a guy Arkansas calls upon in tough spots. If a right-hander is coming up and there are runners on second and third with two outs, Denton will be the guy tasked with getting out of the jam. He may not throw a lot of innings, which could lead to an inflated ERA if he gives up just a few earned runs, but I think he’ll be put in a lot of tough spots and will do well, which will endear him to the fans.

Most Frustrating Player: Jordan McFarland

Van Horn has said throughout the offseason that it is time for McFarland to step up and be a player. He’s worked hard, changed his approach and had good moments, but he’s in the midst of a horrible slump right now.

The potential is there for McFarland to hit a lot of home runs because he’s the strongest guy on the team. Much like Chad Spanberger a couple of years ago, though, he struggles with strikeouts.

Assuming he gets enough opportunities, McFarland could be a guy who has a very up-and-down season. There will be weekends when he goes 1 for 13 with eight strikeouts, but then he may follow it up the next weekend by going 5 for 12 with a couple of home runs and doubles and a lot of RBIs.

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