Will Arkansas Have Stovall In Saturday Lineup?
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Arkansas fans may finally get a chance to see second baseman Peyton Stovall this year. He is expected to return from a broken foot this weekend, according to the official Arkansas baseball X account.
Coach Dave Van Horn mentioned a couple weeks ago that Stovall would soon return to the diamond.
"I'd say a couple more weeks," Van Horn said back on Feb. 27. "He's moving around good. He's throwing, swinging the bat off a chair. Whatever we can do to just keep him moving."
Stovall suffered a broken foot during a Feb. 5 intrasquad scrimmage. He was hit by a ball on his foot, but the injury didn’t require surgery.
He is coming off a shortened 2023 season which saw him suffer a torn labrum. Stovall recorded a .253 average with five home runs and 31 runs batted in just 38 games before the injury.
During recovery, Van Horn said Stovall intends to never be taken out of the line-up upon his return.
“He wants to play,” Van Horn said. “He's already told me 'when I get back in the line-up I'm never coming out.' So, I hope that's the case."
With Stovall’s return, it will be interesting how the line-up will look in Game 1 against McNeese State in Saturday's doubleheader. Jared Sprague-Lott has played third base for the majority of the season. He still leads the Razorbacks with a .417 batting average. Keeping him in at designated hitter could be a possibility.
Greenwood native Peyton Holt has played a lot of innings at second base since the April injury to Stovall. He will likely move back to third base which was the plan since preseason.
Between the infield of Ben McLaughlin, Wehiwa Aloy and Holt the trio has each committed one error. Sprague-Lott leads the team with five. An addition of Stovall likely raises Arkansas’ team fielding percentage of .969.
Arkansas' double-header against McNeese State Saturday will begin at noon Saturday.
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