Dave Van Horn expresses excitement over Peyton Holt atop lineup

Arkansas head coach Dave Van Horn decided to keep one of his top hitters, Payton Holt, as the lead-off guy in the Razorback lineup in a move that has worked to great success thus far.

It’s actually been two Peytons sharing leadoff duties throughout the last couple months, as Holt is currently the guy leading off the lineup while Peyton Stovall has also hit first for a few games. Both of those players top the Razorback roster in terms of batting average, each hitting north of .320 on the season.

So, at his press conference ahead of Arkansas’ final regular season series at Texas A&M, head coach Dave Van Horn was asked about the decision to keep Holt at leadoff while Stovall has moved down in the order a bit.

“Yeah, I like him up there,” Van Horn said of Holt, then commenting on Stovall. “You know, we’ve been trying to figure out a way to to get Stovall down in the order, whether it’s two or three, driving some runs. We just needed somebody to be on base.”

In the final win over Mississippi State last weekend, it was Holt and then Stovall leading off the order as the Hogs cruised to a nine-run output and rubber match victory to take the series. With that result and strong numbers overall from Holt atop the order, Van Horn likes having him there.

“It looks like Holt is going to be fine there,” added Van Horn. “He might not be your typical lead off guy that’s gonna sit up there and wait until he gets the perfect pitch to hit. And it may be three pitches in or five. You know, if he gets something he likes he’s going to take a swing at it, and I’m good with that.”

While Van Horn struggled figuring out where to put Holt in the lineup, and Holt himself had a slow month or two early on, his elevation to the leadoff spot has worked wonders.

“But, you know, Payton’s been very patient with us, didn’t get off to a great start, moving him around. I mean, he just was a great teammate. When he got his shot, he didn’t give it up,” added Van Horn.

“We wouldn’t be where we were or where we are without him. Obviously, we need him big time going forward. He’s very valuable.”

That’s some high praise for the versatile senior, who’s become a lynchpin in the Arkansas lineup as its leadoff batter.