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Jared Wegner explains mindset during go-ahead grand slam, updates health

Grant Grubbs Profile Pictureby:Grant Grubbs•05/25/23•

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Photo by Wesley Hitt | Getty Images

Arkansas outfielder Jared Wegner is back from injury. He delivered the message to Texas A&M in devastating fashion on Wednesday.

In No. 2 seed Arkansas’ 6-5 SEC Tournament triumph over 11-seed Texas A&M, Wegner hit his first home run since returning from injury just six days prior. However, the hit wasn’t simply a home run. It was a grand slam, and it came when Arkansas needed it most.

Arkansas was down 4-1 in the bottom of the seventh inning. Bases loaded. Enter Wegner. While the cinematic moment seemed magical, Wegner insists it was a calculated result.

“With my grand slam, the previous two at-bats I was kind of late on a lot of fastballs, and they were attacking me with fastballs, and they brought in Garcia who has velo, and was kind of hunting a fastball middle in and got it off on that first pitch,” Wegner said during the postgame press conference.

Wegner has made a career off his ability to read pitchers. Before suffering a fractured thumb against Arkansas-Little Rock on April 11, the graduate student was hitting .351 and led the Razorbacks with 12 home runs and 44 RBI on the season.

Since his return, Wegner’s statistics have been nowhere near as spectacular. Before the grand slam, Wegner was 1-13 from the plate and had been hit by balls three times. Wegner is the first one to admit it’s been tough.

“Coming back off the injury, it’s been a struggle kind of getting my timing down. After that swing, I feel confident.”

Luckily, he’s also the first one to admit he’s beginning to feel like himself again. Wegner isn’t the only one who can tell the difference.

“[Wegner has] had certain at-bats where he didn’t look the same, and he just looked like the last couple of days during batting practice, his swing started looking a little more normal. So I’m feeling a lot better about that,” Arkansas head coach Dave Van Horn said following the SEC Tournament win.

Time will tell if Van Horn’s feelings are warranted. The Razorbacks will take on a true test today against No. 3 seed LSU at 5:30 p.m. ET. The game will be broadcast on the SEC Network.