FAYETTEVILLE — Due to a combination of the Major League Baseball Draft, injuries and transfers, Arkansas must replace 430 innings pitched from the team that finished national runner-up earlier this year.
Gone are weekend starters Blaine Knight and Kacey Murphy, and weekend bullpen studs Barrett Loseke and Jake Reindl. Also gone are a pair of promising freshmen from the 2018 team — right-handers Bryce Bonnin and Jackson Rutledge, who transferred to Texas Tech and San Jacinto Junior College, respectively.
The turnover within the pitching staff has left the Razorbacks with a blank canvas this fall. There are some pieces that are evident — Isaiah Campbell will be in line to start on the weekend and Matt Cronin, the single-season saves record holder at Arkansas, is back as a closer — but the rest of the puzzle must be pieced together between now and the time the Diamond Hogs open the 2019 season against Eastern Illinois in February.