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The Major League Baseball season is just under a month old, and a few former Razorbacks have had a hot start to their 2022 campaigns.
There are currently 10 ProHogs in the majors right now and they all represent a different franchise. Here is a look at how they have fared so far…
Andrew Benintendi - Kansas City Royals
Benintendi has had one of the hottest bats in all of baseball to begin the season. His .354 batting average is good for third highest in the American League and he is tied for 5th in the AL with 29 hits.
Of the 23 games that Benintendi has suited up this season, he has failed to record a hit in just five. He has nine multi-hit games, which is just one less than his total number of strikeouts this season (10).
Unfortunately for Benintendi, he has not had much of a chance to drive in runs with the Royals, who have scored one run in their past three games. He leads the team with 11 RBIs and a .407 on-base percentage.
Jalen Beeks - Tampa Bay Rays
The southpaw from Prairie Grove has seen action in five games this season. He has thrown 9 1/3 scoreless innings of relief for the Rays.
Beeks has given up just four hits across his 33 batters faced and he has 13 strikeouts to go with just three walks. He earned a win on April 20 in an 8-2 win over the Cubs that was cut short after just 5 1/2 innings due to rain.
Of the pitchers on the Rays’ staff, Beeks is fourth with 12.5 strikeouts per nine innings and he is one of four Tampa Bay pitchers with a 0.00 ERA this season.
Brian Anderson - Miami Marlins
Anderson is in his sixth straight season as a third baseman for the Marlins. He is hitting .258/.387/.387 to start the season for a 12-12 Miami squad. Of the 20 games Anderson has appeared in, he has a hit in 13 of them. He has only two RBIs, one of which came on his first homer of the season Sunday against Seattle.
Anderson has 22 strikeouts compared to 11 walks on the season. He has started 10 games at third, three in left field and five in right field and has a .970 fielding percentage across the three positions.
Zack Jackson - Oakland Athletics
Jackson was finally called up to the big leagues this season with the Athletics. He has appeared in 12 games and thrown 11 innings so far.
Serving as a short relief pitcher, Jackson has racked up 14 strikeouts compared to eight walks. He earned his first career save on April 19 against Baltimore.
Jackson has surrendered eight hits and six earned runs this season. He has pitched every 2-3 days for Oakland and has the fourth-most innings pitched of any Athletics reliever.
Dallas Keuchel - Chicago White Sox
The former Cy Young Award winner is off to a rough start in 2022. His 8.40 ERA is by far the highest of any White Sox starting pitcher.
Keuchel has walked 11 batters and struck out eight across his four starts. He has given up 24 hits and 14 earned runs during those starts.
The bulk of the ugliness came in an April 20 start against Cleveland, when he surrendered 10 hits, 10 runs and seven earned runs in just one inning of work.
Over his last two starts, Keuchel has walked 10 batters and suffered losses to Kansas City and the Los Angeles Angels.
James McCann - New York Mets
McCann’s season at the plate has been underwhelming, but behind the plate it has been great. He caught a combined no-hitter last Friday from five different Mets pitchers.
Through his 16 games with a plate appearance this season, McCann was held hitless in nine. He has recorded just 10 hits, five RBIs and one home run in 42 at bats.
He has been splitting time with Tomas Nido, who has played in 13 games compared to McCann’s 18.
Matt Reynolds - Cincinnati Reds
Reynolds began the season with the Mets, but the Reds claimed him off waivers on April 24. He has seen five at bats in three games during his short time in Cincinnati.
In his 10 at bats, Reynolds has recorded five hits — including two doubles — and two walks. He is listed as a shortstop, but his 16 innings played in the field have been split between third base and second base.
Drew Smyly - Chicago Cubs
Smyly has put together a good start to his season, posting the lowest ERA (2.79) of any Cubs starting pitcher. He has a 1-2 record in his 19 1/3 innings pitched.
The first two outings of the year resulted in 9 2/3 innings of scoreless ball and two Cubs victories. Smyly also has 13 strikeouts and three walks this year.
In his past two outings, Smyly has given up 11 hits and six runs during two losses to the Pirates and the Braves. To be fair, he was provided with only three total runs from his offense.
Ryne Stanek - Houston Astros
Stanek is in his second season with Houston and his sixth season in the majors. He has seen action in 10 games this season, throwing 8 2/3 total innings for the Astros.
This year, Stanek has allowed just two runs and he has struck out eight batters. He earned his first save of the season on April 27 against the Texas Rangers.
Most recently, the Astros turned to Stanek twice in a series with Seattle. He faced just three batters in two outings and struck out one.
Trevor Stephan - Cleveland Guardians
Stephan is in his second season in the majors with Cleveland. He leads the Guardians with 11 total appearances and has a 1.59 ERA in his 11 1/3 innings pitched.
The righty has a 2-0 record with wins coming on April 12 against Cincinnati and April 29 against Oakland. Just six of the 43 batters that Stephan has faced this year recorded a hit. He has struck out 13 batters and walked three.
Stephan’s last outing came in relief during the Guardians’ May 4 win over San Diego. He surrendered his first two runs of the season while giving up two hits and walking three.
