No. 3 Arkansas (10-1) looks to continue protecting home base as the team gears up for a two-game midweek series against the Louisiana-Monroe Warhawks (5-5) out of the Sun Belt Conference at Baum-Walker Stadium.
Arkansas leads the all-time series over ULM, 12-7, and has won the last six meetings. The last time the Hogs took on the Warhawks was in 2018, when the Razorbacks swept a two-game midweek series on April 3 and 4 in Fayetteville, Ark.
Here are three keys to the game Arkansas will need going into Tuesday’s series opener against ULM.
Arkansas baseball vs Louisiana-Monroe: 3 Keys to Victory
Get out of jams efficiently
The Razorbacks held a 3-1 lead going into the top of the ninth inning of Sunday’s series finale against Charlotte. The Hogs gave up two runs to tie the game but still ended up walking it off on an RBI single by Logan Maxwell to secure the sweep, 4-3. The past few games have been a struggle for the Arkansas pitching staff when trying to leave runners on base. The Razorbacks need to get back to what they do best when bringing in a relief pitcher on the mound. Stranding runners.
Continue to rake
Thanks to a 10-run fourth inning rally in Friday’s series opening win over the 49ers, the Hogs went on to complete a massive comeback, 11-10. Arkansas also saw a glimpse of its bats producing runs in Saturday’s 8-5 win over Charlotte. The Razorbacks need to continue keeping their bats hot with Southeastern Conference play coming up shortly.
Kuhio Aloy is slashing for a team-leading .556 average with four home runs and 16 RBIs while stringing together an on-base percentage of .636. He is definitely going to be a guy Arkansas is going to rely on driving in runs and getting on base, with nine of his 15 hits on the year going for extra bases.
Don’t be afraid to play small ball
The Razorbacks showed some signs of playing small ball in their weekend series against the 49ers, with sacrifice bunts to move runners over. Freshman Gabe Fraser got his first career collegiate hit on a bunt single on Sunday in the bottom of the second. Arkansas has some players who have the speed to beat out infield hits. But what really matters is that the Hogs need to move up the baserunners whenever they need to get them in scoring position.
The Razorbacks and the Warhawks will begin the two-game midweek series on Tuesday in Baum-Walker Stadium. The first pitch is scheduled for 3 p.m., and the game will be streamed on SEC Network+.