Dave Van Horn expresses frustration with Gage Wood after rough outing

Arkansas baseball’s true freshman reliever, Gage Wood, is running out of gas at the mound lately. He performed really well for most of the year out of the bullpen and was topping out at roughly 95 miles per hour on his fastball — a strong mark for a rookie. But towards the end of May, for whatever reason, Wood has unraveled, starting with the Vanderbilt series to end the regular season.

In his two previous outings against Mississippi State and South Carolina, Wood lasted 3+ innings in relief, giving up just two hits and no runs combined. However, when he returned to the mound against the Commodores, Wood got busted up for five earned runs and recorded a measly one out before he was yanked.

His final two outings of the SEC slate weren’t as disastrous, but weren’t much better either. In a second outing during the Vandy series, Wood was only left in for two outs; and then in the SEC Tournament loss vs. Texas A&M, Wood failed to provide out of the bullpen as he walked two batters and was pulled before getting a single out.

In his last three trips to the mound, Gage Wood is responsible for just three outs, compared to five earned runs and four walks given up. After the SEC Tournament loss against the Aggies, Razorback head coach Dave Van Horn said it’s tough to see the freshman lose his muster.

“He’s had three in a row like that so it makes it tough. It makes it tough for us as coaches to — what do we do?” asked Van Horn, noting Wood’s drop in speed.

“He’s a guy that was throwing 95 miles an hour, had a little attitude, and he’s throwing the ball 91, 92, think he might have topped out at 93, but throwing nothing but strikes. It’s frustrating, and we’ve got to figure out this week if we’re going to be able to use him on the weekend.”

Not the type of mystery any coach wants to have heading into the NCAA Tournament. Whether Wood returns to form could ultimately decide a crucial game in the postseason for the Hogs. Van Horn hates not knowing if one of his best young arms in the bullpen all year can still be trusted. However, Wood has all the opportunity in the world in front of him to turn things around — odds say he’s due for a bounce-back performance.