Reality check: Kentucky Baseball swept in Arkansas

A cold hard dose of reality hit Kentucky Baseball in Fayetteville, as the Wildcats (14-7, 0-3 Southeastern conference) managed just six runs in three games while getting swept by the No. 3 Arkansas Razorbacks (16-3, 3-0 SEC.)

The sweep comes after a 20-7 drubbing at the hands of Indiana in Bloomington, signaling that time of the year when UK typically slides slowly down the Power 5 totem pole.

Crush the in-state foes and mid-majors as much as you’d like, it’s time for the big leagues.

Big bats go missing

Kentucky entered the weekend having pushed at least five runs across the plate in 15 of its first 18 games, signaling that its bats were the key to victory. As it turns out, the Cats just hadn’t faced a pitching staff that was up to snuff.

Senior Connor Noland tossed 6.2 innings for the Hogs in game one of the series on Friday, fanning seven Wildcats while giving up just one run. Freshman lefty Hagen Smith followed suit in game two, throwing six innings and allowing three runs on five hits. In the finale, Jaxon Wiggins hurled six innings of shutout ball, striking out eight.

Game one proved to show promise, as the Cats managed eight hits, but were unable to tally more than a couple of runs, eventually falling 6-2 in the opener.

Hartford transfer John Thrasher turned in one of his best hitting performances of the season, going 3-4 with a double, scoring twice. Ryan Ritter added a double and base knock of his own, but no other Wildcat managed an extra-base hit on Friday.

During game two, Hunter Jump was the sole player to notch anything other than a single for UK, as he hit his second home run of the season in the sixth inning in what was a garbage-time run, with Arkansas posting eight runs in the first four innings. The Hogs would cruise to a 9-3 win.

Kentucky then managed to out-hit the Hogs on Sunday 7-6, but Ritter’s solo homer in the seventh inning was the only run the Cats could muster, resulting in another loss, this time by a score of 3-1.

Reigning National Player of the Week Chase Estep was brought to a screeching halt at the plate, going 2-13 in the series. Second baseman Daniel Harris IV managed just one hit in nine at-bats, while also recording two costly errors in the game one defeat. Right fielder Adam Fogel went 1-12, seeing his batting average begin to hover around the Mendoza Line, now at .219.

It wasn’t a great weekend at the plate for the Cats, and it’s not going to get any easier.

Sub-par pitching meets a sturdy lineup

The Razorbacks don’t exactly knock the cover off the ball, but that’s because they don’t have to. Kentucky doesn’t know what that feels like. The Hogs can survive on four or five runs a game because they know the pitching staff is likely going to give up less than that. Defense wins championships, after all.

Kentucky’s staff has been less than ideal for head coach Nick Mingione this season.

Friday night starter Cole Stupp, who has struggled to begin his junior campaign, managed just four innings, allowing eight hits along the way. The three errors committed by Harris and Estep only charged one earned run to Stupp, though five crossed the plate. The bullpen managed to settle in, allowing just one hit in the final four innings of work, but the damage was done.

Game two saw South Carolina transfer Magdiel Cotto struggle once again, as he was pulled after just 1.2 innings of work, allowing three hits and three earned runs. Walks have been an issue for Cotto, but he gave up just one free pass to the Razorbacks on Saturday.

Ryan Hagenow was no better in relief, as he walked five Hogs in two innings, leading to Arkansas piling on five more runs. Freshman Jackson Nove was the lone bright spot for the Cats, as he threw two scoreless to close out the loss.

For once, the pitching staff gave the Cats a chance to win on Sunday, as Tyler Bosma, Darren Williams and Sean Harney combined for just three runs on six hits while striking out nine. Williams has been spectacular out of the bullpen for UK this season, as his ERA now sits at 0.48 in eight appearances with over 20 innings pitched.

Same old season?

Whatever magic that UK pulled together when TCU came to town in the first week of March has taken a hiatus. It’s too early to pull the plug on a chance to compete in the top conference in college baseball, but the trio of losses to the Hogs paints an awfully familiar picture that points towards the ‘Cats sitting at home come the end of May.

It’s been the same story the last few seasons for Mingione and his teams. Sure, there’s plenty of promise, but the ‘Cats just aren’t good enough for a seat at the big kid’s table as of now — that can easily change, though.

Luckily, there’s plenty of baseball to be played. Kentucky hosts Morehead State on Tuesday, March 22 at 6:30 p.m. EST, which kicks off a nine-game homestand at Kentucky Proud Park. The Georgia Bulldogs will roll into Lexington for the second SEC series of the season, with game one also set to begin at 6:30 on Friday.