2 key cogs changing positions

FAYETTEVILLE — The SEC freshman of the year in 2018 has a new position this year and so does his classmate.

Heston Kjerstad will switch corner outfield spots and open in right field today for the University of Arkansas in its season opener against Eastern Illinois. Kjerstad hit .322 with 14 home runs and a team-high 58 RBI as the Razorbacks tied Ole Miss for the SEC West crown and lost to Oregon State in the College World Series finals.

“I feel pretty good about it,” Kjerstad said of his new vantage point in right field. “It’s a little different angle, but still the same thing as left. You’ve just got to catch whatever comes your way.

“I feel like it’s a good fit for me arm-wise, making some longer throws. It’ll be fun out there.”

Casey Martin, who hit a team-high .345 with 13 home runs and 49 RBI, will shift from third base to shortstop.

Center fielder Dominic Fletcher said he liked what he’s seen from Kjerstad in right field.

“He’s done really well,” Fletcher said. “He has a really good arm over there. You want your right fielder to have a good arm. And then I think he was kind of batting the sun a little bit in left, so moving him over to right will probably help with that a little bit.”

Kjerstad had a fly ball hit off his face during the postseason last year, but he also made one of the year’s top catches to rob Dallas Baptist’s Devlin Granberg of a home run in a 4-3 victory for the Razorbacks in the final game of the NCAA Fayetteville Regional.

Coach Dave Van Horn said he wanted to opt for defensive strength up the middle in opting to start Jack Kenley at second base and have Jacob Nesbit at third base to open the season.

At catcher, the Razorbacks are expected to use both Casey Opitz and Zack Plunkett, who have both been defensive stalwarts.

Third starter

Arkansas Coach Dave Van Horn said he and pitching coach Matt Hobbs had many options for their Sunday starter before settling on 6-4 junior Jacob Kostyshock.

Among the candidates were junior right-hander Cody Scroggins (0-0, 4.60), sophomore right-hander Kole Ramage (1-1, 4.00), who pitched well at the College World Series, and freshman left-hander Patrick Wicklander.

Had sophomore Caleb Bolden not suffered an arm injury that required Tommy John surgery, he would have been in the mix for a weekend starting job as well.

“They’ve all been throwing pretty well, so what you see this weekend might be different against USC,” Van Horn said, referencing next weekend’s series in Los Angeles. “I just want to make sure we have a deep, strong bullpen. That’s a big concern. We have the guys, but it’s just a matter of if we want to take one of those guys out and start them.”

Coming up

Coach Dave Van Horn revealed some future opponents for the Razorbacks during his talk at the Swatters Club meeting in Fayetteville on Monday including games against Texas, Oklahoma and Baylor next year in the Shriners Classic at Minute Maid Park in Houston.

Arkansas will also face Oklahoma and Michigan State on the road in midweek games, with both of those teams playing at Baum-Walker Stadium in 2021.

The Razorbacks will open the 2021 season in a weekend tournament at the Texas Rangers’ new ballpark against Texas, TCU and Texas Tech. They will also play a weekend series at Louisiana Tech in Ruston, La.

Van Horn said Arkansas has committed to play in the Round Rock Classic in 2022 in Round Rock, Texas, at the home of the Houston Astros’ Class AAA affiliate.

Denton OK

Sophomore right-hand sidearm pitcher Marshall Denton is OK after being struck by a batted ball hit up the middle by Heston Kjerstad on Sunday.

Denton, who had gone by his middle name Angus previously, posted a video of the incident on social media. The ball hit Denton on the right side of the neck and rolled back on the infield as he was clearly in pain but did not go down.

“Yeah that was scary,” Arkansas Coach Dave Van Horn said. “That was one of the scarier things I’ve seen in a long time.”