2026 Fall College Baseball Reset: Arkansas

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2026 Fall College Baseball Reset: Arkansas

Originally posted on New Baseball Media
By Chris Studley | Last updated Oct 15, 2026 9:58 PM ET

While the 2026 campaign did yield a tournament berth for Arkansas, it wasn’t the kind of season that was expected. Fresh off a run in Omaha, the Razorbacks missed out on hosting a Regional, and then were ousted in the Lawrence Regional. Now, with many notables from the ’25 and ’26 clubs gone, it will be a fresher start for Arkansas.

The Returnees

Last year’s team, both in terms of position players and pitchers, was composed heavily of position players and pitchers. So, there will be a significantly different look for 2027.

Arkansas did return several notable hitters, including Nolan Souza, Zack Stewart, TJ Pompey, Reese Robinett, Carter Rutenbar, and Christian Turner. All of those players, aside from Turner, played at least 50 games this past year.

Souza was third on Arkansas last year in total hits (61), while Pompey was tied for the third-most home runs with 15. Pompey was tied with fifth-year player Zack Stewart, the former Missouri State outfielder, who also posted a .399 on-base percentage.

Robinett, like Stewart, also did a fine job of getting on base, with a .373 on-base percentage.

Rutenbar and Turner were freshmen last year, and both had two home runs each.

Moving to the pitching staff, it will be a real different look. Hunter Dietz, Gabe Gaeckle, Colin Fisher, Tate McGuire, and Ethan McElvain all went pro after the 2026 campaign. For those keeping track, that list included all three regular starters, plus a slew of relievers.

Cole Gibler is on the 2027 roster. Now a junior, Gibler struck out 59 over 59 innings. Mainly a fastball/slider pitcher, and the slider had a lot of movement.

(via New Baseball Media)

Mark Brissey, now a sophomore, struck out 22 over 16 innings. Slider/fastball pitcher, with the heater sitting in the low-to-mid-90s.

(via New Baseball Media)

Jackson Kircher, Peyton Lee, and James DeCremer also returned.

The Newcomers

Cal Baptist had a strong regular season in 2026, one that did not result in an NCAA tournament berth. After the season, the school lost its best bat from 2026 to Tennessee (get to that school in a second) and its best-performing pitcher to Arkansas.

Michael Malki took over as the Lancers’ de facto ace after Cody New went down early in 2026. Malki’s sophomore season was fantastic, as the now-junior finished with 111 strikeouts, good enough for a top-30 finish in Division I last year.

Malki is, arguably, the most notable addition for a club that recruited quite a few now-sophomore pitchers in the transfer portal.

Connor Udland, from Houston, struck out 44 over 38 innings in his freshman year in 2026. Luke Neiswonger punched out 47 over 32 innings for Central Michigan. Ridge Harvey, for Belmont, led the Bruins with 50 strikeouts over 46 innings.

Arkansas also plucked away two players from Tennessee. Brayden Krenzel struck out 28 over 17 innings for the Volunteers last year. Hard fastball that ran to the upper-90s, along with a curveball and changeup.

(via New Baseball Media)

The other is Manny Marin, one of several new hitters. Marin was a two-year starter with the Volunteers. He hit nine home runs, although Marin didn’t get on base a ton.

Johnathan Gomez was one of two standout hitters from Fairleigh Dickinson in the NEC. Teaming with slugger Hunter Ray, Gomez led the Knights in total hits (82) and cracked 10 home runs.

AJ Evasco was a sparkplug for Kansas State last season, batting .348 with a .415 on-base percentage for the Wildcats. Evasco hit .330 with 19 home runs in two seasons with K-State, where he was a starter in ’25 and ’26.

The other big get from the Big 12 transfer portal was Nolan Traeger, a two-year regular with TCU.

A stable catcher, and one who posted a .399 on-base percentage. Didn’t swing-and-miss much in the Cape Cod League this past summer, with a Whiff% just above 23%. He was also aggressive, as he swung more than he took in the Cape.

Arkansas also hit big with their freshman class, which included all-around outfielder Jovorskie Lane Jr.

This article first appeared on New Baseball Media and was syndicated with permission.

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