FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — The 2022 MLB draft ushered the exits of nine Razorbacks from Fayetteville, creating a lot of holes for head coach Dave Van Horn and company to fill in 2023.
Fortunately for the head Hog and pitching coach Matt Hobbs, only three of those nine — Connor Noland, Evan Taylor and Zebulon Vermillion — were hurlers who saw the mound with regularity last season. They have plenty of returning talent to rely on this season, so they hit the transfer portal hard for bats and gloves, but the three new arms they got drew some attention during the fall season as well.
With exactly one month to opening day, get to know the new pitchers you should expect to see healthy doses of in 2023:
Transfers
Koty Frank - Graduate RHP - 6'2", 220 pounds
2022 Stats: 14 APP, 7 GS, 3.81 ERA, 5-0 W-L, 59 IP, 54 H, 30 R, 25 ER, 19 BB, 70 K
It is impossible for those who follow the Razorbacks to forget Charlie Welch's pinch-hit home run in the eighth inning against Nebraska during the 2021 Fayetteville Regional, but an oft-overlooked detail is that Frank was the pitcher who earned the loss in that game. Although that particular experience was forgettable for him and the Cornhuskers, he said the whole weekend played a role in his decision to use his final season of eligibility with Arkansas.
Originally from Tushka, Oklahoma, Frank spent two years in Lincoln after two seasons in the junior college ranks. He made 27 total appearances for the Cornhuskers, including seven starts, all of which came last season.
With so many returners, it seems unlikely Frank will factor into the starting rotation in 2023, but he has done it enough that he could be a spot starter, if necessary. He is the only of the three incoming transfer pitchers who has spent more than one season at the Division I level, so his experience ought to earn him some innings early in the season.
Frank pitched 11 innings in fall scrimmages that HawgBeat attended. He gave up four earned runs on nine hits, walked six batters and struck out 12.
Hunter Hollan - Junior LHP - 6'5", 200 pounds
2022 stats: 18 APP, 18 GS, 3.59 ERA, 9-3 W-L, 80 1/3 IP, 72 H, 48 R, 32 ER, 28 BB, 96 K
Ranked the No. 15 left-hander in Texas by Perfect Game in 2020, Hollan will be making the jump to Division I for the first time in his career despite two prior commitments. He had originally signed with Texas A&M but walked that back due to uncertainties brought on by the pandemic.
The Milwaukee Brewers selected Hollan in the 15th round of the 2021 MLB draft following his freshman season at San Jacinto, but he elected to honor his commitment to TCU. He turned more heads as a sophomore, tossing a perfect game in April before flipping to the Razorbacks in June.
Featuring a mid-90s fastball that has jumped in velocity significantly since the 2022 season, Hollan's four-pitch mix brings a solid long-outing option to the Hogs in 2023. He landed at No. 83 in MLB.com's Top 100 draft prospects
"There's a really good chance he's going to be a starter," Van Horn said Oct. 12 after the Razorbacks defeated the Texas Rangers' Instructional League team. "But he could also finish games for us, be a middle guy. It's still going to evolve."
Hollan had an impressive fall, as he struck out 11 batters, walked three and gave up three earned runs on seven hits in eight innings of work during scrimmages HawgBeat attended.
Cody Adcock - Junior RHP - 6'4", 210 pounds
2022 stats: 14 APP, 14 GS, 6.58 ERA, 4-2 W-L, 67 IP, 70 H, 54 R, 49 ER, 35 BB, 81 K
A native of Texarkana, Arkansas, Adcock is about to undergo his second stint in the SEC following a tumultuous 2021 with Ole Miss. He posted a 6.41 ERA in 19 2/3 innings of work as a Rebel, including a start against the Razorbacks in the SEC Tournament, before transferring to Crowder College for his sophomore season.
His stats at the junior college ranks are far from attractive, but the potential is clearly there with Adcock. Perfect Game ranked him the No. 3 right-hander in Arkansas in the 2020 class, and working with Hobbs during the fall has clearly made an impact on his velocity.
"Some of the guys we brought in like Hunter Hollan, Adcock, we thought they were 90-mph guys," Van Horn said Nov. 9. "These guys have made some jumps. I’m not going to say they can hold it like Wiggins, but they can throw the ball 94, 95, 93 with good secondary stuff and they fill up the zone. I know if I was a defender I’d like to play behind them because you know they’re going to just fill it up."
Adcock excelled in the fall, hurling six innings and giving up just one earned run on two hits. He struck out 10 batters and walked one in scrimmages HawgBeat attended.
