Non-Stop Rain Shows Arkansas Fortunate to Avoid Day 1 of SEC Tourney

Texas A&M, Tennessee play eight innings in mud, showers as weather makes advancing to play Razorbacks difficult

Author:
Kent Smith
Publish date:
May 23, 2023 4:44 PM EDT

In this story:

HOOVER, Ala. – If the Arkansas Razorbacks are looking to avoid adding any more injuries, then the best thing the team could have done toward that goal is win enough games to avoid playing on Day 1.

Tennessee and Texas A&M, the winner of which will play the Razorbacks on Thursday, played an entire game in the rain at the Hoover Met. Mud built up and eventually so did the puddles on the infield as the Aggies carried a one-hit game into the top of the ninth with a 3-0 lead. That was when the downpour became so heavy that vision became impossible and teams were pulled off the field.

Unless something dramatic happens when play resumes, it looks like Texas A&M will get a much needed win to increase the odds of getting into a regional. While the Aggies have everything to gain, Arkansas doesn't. There's every reason for the men from College Station to throw a waterlogged ball with everything they've got. There's purpose behind the risk of stepping on a wet base while making the turn at full speed. None of the potential injuries waiting to happen are worth the risk for Arkansas. The last thing Dave Van Horn needs is to have Hagan Smith slide on his follow through on the mound and damage his plant leg or have Brady Tygart throwing a wet ball and re-injure himself.

The good news for Arkansas is that the projected weather for game time tomorrow is partly cloudy and 77 degrees. It looks like there will be just enough wind to dry things out a bit, so if the Razorbacks can dodge the 15% chance of rain, conditions should be as good as possible in Hoover.

If A&M holds on, the Arkansas staff will have to be wary of outfielder Jace LaViolette. Despite the difficult conditions, LaViolette has reached base in three of his four at-bats including a monster home run to lead off the sixth that blasted a hole through the rain as it exited near the top of the scoreboard near center field and carried into the pine trees well back behind the fence. Simple physics say shots like that shouldn't be possible in that kind of weather.

While LaViolette added the punctuation to a 3-0 lead, Troy Wansing 1-hit the Volunteers for eight innings. It's difficult to tell how serious Tennessee is taking this tournament game. The Volunteers started Seth Halvorsen, a Missouri transfer who has pitch more than three innings only once this season while being all over the place as far as consistency. The righty matched his season high giving up two runs over four innings before giving way to Camden Sewell who lasted three innings in the rain.

If the Aggies hold on in this final inning when play resumes, they will play Arkansas sometime in the 1 o'clock hour on the SEC Network.