Will add thoughts from DVH when his press conference is over.
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Arkansas baseball head coach Dave Van Horn announced the team’s first starting weekend rotation of the 2025 season Wednesday ahead of the Opening Weekend series against Washington State in Fayetteville.
Sophomore phenom Gabe Gaeckle, the Baseball America preseason SEC Pitcher of the Year, will get the nod Friday against Cougars. East Carolina transfer left-hander Zach Root will start Saturday, while junior right-hander Gage Wood will start Game 3. Ohio State transfer left Landon Beidelschies is set to start the fourth game Monday.
It should be noted that weather will play a big factor this weekend and Van Horn alluded to an incoming announcement at 1:30 p.m. CT Wednesday regarding scheduling.
Gaeckle was a unanimous preseason All-American and he was also named preseason First Team All-SEC by the league's coaches. The 6-foot-0, 190-pound right-hander was a D1Baseball Freshman All-American last year, when he logged a 2.32 ERA with 19 walks and 57 strikeouts across 22 total relief appearances.
ALSO READ: Arkansas returns intriguing group of second-year pitchers
"I think he knows he’s there, he’s a guy," Van Horn said Jan. 15. "I mean, he’s just confident. His stuff’s always been good. Location seems to be better than ever."
Gaeckle did not start a game last season, but it's worth noting that Van Horn has since alluded to the fact that Gaeckle would've been a starting pitcher in the Super Regional if the Razorbacks were not eliminated in the Fayetteville Regional.
A 6-foot-2, 210-pound native of Fort Myers, Florida, Root made 12 starts and 13 total appearances as a sophomore for East Carolina last year. Though he dealt with an arm injury through the year, Root finished with a 3.56 ERA, 76 strikeouts and 21 walks in 68.1 innings pitched.
RELATED: Transfer pitcher Zach Root has big shoes to fill
Root was named a preseason Third Team All-American by D1Baseball and NCBWA, while Perfect Game listed him as a Second Team All-American.
Wood appeared 22 times as a sophomore last season and started three games for the Razorbacks — all of which came late in the season after April 30. He finished with a 4.46 ERA and 56 strikeouts compared to eight walks in 40.1 innings pitched.
A 6-foot-0, 205-pound native out of Batesville (Ark.), Wood has changed his jersey number from No. 45 to No. 14 for this season.
Last season at Ohio State, Beidelschies served as the Buckeye's Friday night starter. Across 15 starts and 84.2 innings pitched, he totaled a 4.15 ERA with 91 strikeouts and 31 walks.
"He can spot it up, quick to the plate with his short arm action, a little different," Van Horn said Sept. 3. "Got a good slider and good changeup. He can be a starter, I think he was a starter at Ohio State. I think he might have been their Friday starter. I know he was, I don’t even know why I’m talking about it. He can help us all kinds of ways. He can come out of the pen, he can start. I like those kinds of guys, they work quick, quick to the plate. He’s not scared."
ALSO READ: Diamond Hogs to lean on Ohio State transfer pitcher
The Razorbacks and Washington State are set for a four-game series, which will begin Friday at 3 p.m. CT at Baum-Walker Stadium in Fayetteville. The games can be streamed on SEC Network+.
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Arkansas baseball head coach Dave Van Horn announced the team’s first starting weekend rotation of the 2025 season Wednesday ahead of the Opening Weekend series against Washington State in Fayetteville.
Sophomore phenom Gabe Gaeckle, the Baseball America preseason SEC Pitcher of the Year, will get the nod Friday against Cougars. East Carolina transfer left-hander Zach Root will start Saturday, while junior right-hander Gage Wood will start Game 3. Ohio State transfer left Landon Beidelschies is set to start the fourth game Monday.
It should be noted that weather will play a big factor this weekend and Van Horn alluded to an incoming announcement at 1:30 p.m. CT Wednesday regarding scheduling.
Gaeckle was a unanimous preseason All-American and he was also named preseason First Team All-SEC by the league's coaches. The 6-foot-0, 190-pound right-hander was a D1Baseball Freshman All-American last year, when he logged a 2.32 ERA with 19 walks and 57 strikeouts across 22 total relief appearances.
ALSO READ: Arkansas returns intriguing group of second-year pitchers
"I think he knows he’s there, he’s a guy," Van Horn said Jan. 15. "I mean, he’s just confident. His stuff’s always been good. Location seems to be better than ever."
Gaeckle did not start a game last season, but it's worth noting that Van Horn has since alluded to the fact that Gaeckle would've been a starting pitcher in the Super Regional if the Razorbacks were not eliminated in the Fayetteville Regional.
A 6-foot-2, 210-pound native of Fort Myers, Florida, Root made 12 starts and 13 total appearances as a sophomore for East Carolina last year. Though he dealt with an arm injury through the year, Root finished with a 3.56 ERA, 76 strikeouts and 21 walks in 68.1 innings pitched.
RELATED: Transfer pitcher Zach Root has big shoes to fill
Root was named a preseason Third Team All-American by D1Baseball and NCBWA, while Perfect Game listed him as a Second Team All-American.
Wood appeared 22 times as a sophomore last season and started three games for the Razorbacks — all of which came late in the season after April 30. He finished with a 4.46 ERA and 56 strikeouts compared to eight walks in 40.1 innings pitched.
A 6-foot-0, 205-pound native out of Batesville (Ark.), Wood has changed his jersey number from No. 45 to No. 14 for this season.
Last season at Ohio State, Beidelschies served as the Buckeye's Friday night starter. Across 15 starts and 84.2 innings pitched, he totaled a 4.15 ERA with 91 strikeouts and 31 walks.
"He can spot it up, quick to the plate with his short arm action, a little different," Van Horn said Sept. 3. "Got a good slider and good changeup. He can be a starter, I think he was a starter at Ohio State. I think he might have been their Friday starter. I know he was, I don’t even know why I’m talking about it. He can help us all kinds of ways. He can come out of the pen, he can start. I like those kinds of guys, they work quick, quick to the plate. He’s not scared."
ALSO READ: Diamond Hogs to lean on Ohio State transfer pitcher
The Razorbacks and Washington State are set for a four-game series, which will begin Friday at 3 p.m. CT at Baum-Walker Stadium in Fayetteville. The games can be streamed on SEC Network+.
