Razorback Pitcher Picks Up Rare Accomplishment
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Arkansas pitching struck out 11 hitters Tuesday in a 9-7 win over Central Arkansas.
It was tied for the Razorbacks' third-lowest strikeout total in a game. That's the standard the Hogs have set, racking up 174 strikeouts in 1081/3 innings, equating to a staff-wide strikeout per nine innings ratio of 14.45.
In a fitting way to showcase the depth, perhaps the greatest individual inning so far was thrown by an under the radar arm on staff. In the seventh inning, Stone Hewlett, a lefty specialist, struck out four batters (three lefties). After striking out the first two, a dropped third strike on a wild pitch allowed Preston Curtis to reach first base. Bryce Cermenelli struck out to end the inning, doubling the Kansas transfer's season strikeout total from four to eight.
"We had a chance to get ‘em there with those lefties and we said he needs to pitch," Arkansas coach Dave Van Horn said. "He came out and he did a really good job. Got a little break on that fastball that rode up and in on the lefty that ended up being a foul ball. Slider was nasty. Lefties have a lot of trouble with him."
How rare is it to have a four strikeout innning? According to Baseball Almanac, it's happened only 102 times throughout the history of baseball. Tyler Glasnow being the most recent to accomplish the feat with the Tampa Bay Rays in July 2023. Only one Razorback has achieved it in the big leagues, Mike Bolsinger in 2017 with the Toronto Blue Jays.
For the 2024 Hogs', it's another reminder of how many weapons the pitching staff possesses. Because of Hewlett's clearly defined role of getting lefties out, his innings have been limited. He came into the game having thrown the second-fewest innings, at just two innings spread over five appearances, but is a serious weapon when facing a lefty.
Hewlett and the rest of the Razorbacks now face McNeese State Friday 3 p.m. in the final weekend non-conference series of the year. The game will be streamed on SEC Network+.
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