HawgBeat - Mason Molina ready to reignite in NCAA Tournament for Razorbacks
Arkansas left-hander Mason Molina is ready to reignite in the NCAA Tournament for the Razorbacks.
arkansas.rivals.com
Arkansas junior left-hander Mason Molina is done overthinking and ready to reignite in his newfound late-season role for the Razorbacks.
After allowing 17 earned runs across his final six SEC starts, Molina was moved to the bullpen in the Diamond Hogs' final regular season series against Texas A&M and then again in the SEC Tournament against Kentucky.
Molina has combined to toss five scoreless frames with five strikeouts and only one hit allowed in relief, a positive sign for a pitching staff in need of some consistency from its frontliners.
"But it was really good to see Mason pitch well again," head coach Dave Van Horn said on Thursday. "He threw well in relief, Game 2 against A&M, the game we needed to win to wrap up the West. And this is his first outing since, and he matched it again, threw really well."
The recent success has left an interesting question ahead of the NCAA Tournament. Does Arkansas move Molina back into a starting role? The Razorbacks could certainly use him, especially with Brady Tygart's struggles and the lack of serious punch behind Gage Wood. No matter where he's used, Molina will be ready to do his job.
"I'm going to throw where I'm needed," Molina said on Thursday. "That's up for them to decide, and I'm just going to go out there and pitch to the best of my ability wherever they want me. So we haven't talked about it yet, but I'm just going to go out there and throw to the best of my abilities."
Known for throwing too many pitches and being too fine with pitch placement, Molina has fought himself and his command multiple times throughout the year. Based on his latest two outings, it seems he's finally letting his arm take over on the mound.
"I think my command has been much better," Molina said. "I've just been filling up the zone with strikes with all four pitches, just being able to command my fastball, which is a huge part of how I pitch. So that, and the slider getting a little bit harder has really helped me go at hitters."
Switching from a starting role to a bullpen crutch can be a difficult adaptation to make for some pitchers, but Molina has taken it in stride and used the opportunity to let the game come to him.
"I think it was a really good thing for me," Molina said. "It allowed me to reset and not overthink things. So that was something we were talking about over the last weeks, just, you know, I was overthinking things and I was trying to be too fine, and now I really don't have the luxury of thinking.
"It's just kind of get hot, go in the game and let your stuff work. So I think if I end up starting at some point again, whether that's up to them or not, it would be -- I would try to transfer that over as much as I can."
Up next, the Razorbacks will await their postseason destiny ahead of the NCAA Selection Show on Monday. The 64-team bracket will be revealed starting at 11 a.m. CT and it will broadcast on ESPN2.
