Razorback announcer expects more success from Hog baseball
Phil Elson is a co-host with Matt Jones for ESPN Radio’s “Halftime,” and they were live July 28 at Armor Bank in Hot Springs while KJ Jefferson did a meet and greet as part of a name, image and likeness deal.
“I love Matt,” Elson said. “He is easygoing as it gets, and we have a good thing. He has got a good sense of humor. He knows his Razorback sports. Our specialties kind of mold well together and our personalities mesh well together. He does not have any ego. He’s self-deprecating. He wants to be good at what he is doing, and it is a lot of fun.”
The talk of the day was about the two running quarterbacks, Jefferson and Jones, in a foot race.
“I think in their prime it would probably be Matt,” Elson said. “If you’re talking running guys over, I think it would be KJ.”
Chad May is the CEO of Armor Bank. Armor Bank also sponsors a radio show for Razorback baseball games.
“I met Phil for the first time this morning,” May said. “That is a statewide broadcast for the baseball program. He has said the word Armor Bank a lot over the last year and so glad to have that affiliation.
“We are all about trying to substantiate our brand so that people can get a taste.”
Elson is the broadcast announcer for Razorback baseball games. After “Halftime” concluded, he spoke about the 2024 Razorback recruiting class.
“I know Jaxon Wiggins’ brother Carson is the highest rated pitcher in the country for high school for next year,” Elson said. “I know he is on there. Having such a high level every year and what they are doing also is just replacing guys through the transfer portal. I think they have done pretty well for this upcoming season 2024.
“Annually, I think they’re going to be able to get the kind of players they want, whether it’s high school from across the country or whether it is out of the portal. Arkansas is a destination.”
Elson highlighted the recent and continued success of the Razorback baseball program under head coach Dave Van Horn in the Southeastern Conference.
“I feel like they are going to repeat the success from last season, if not exceed it,” he said. “It’s tough to know. You don’t even really know what the entire makeup of the team looks like. Expectations for the program go on whatever the success has been like recently or on every year basis now.
“I think it is an expectation that Arkansas will not just compete for the West division championship, but compete for the SEC overall, and they’ll compete to host postseason games from being in a good position to get to Omaha. Don’t see any reason why they wouldn’t next year.”
Unlike basketball and football, baseball programs only receive 11.7 scholarships to offer to their rosters. An increase in scholarships would help NCAA baseball programs get players to college instead of losing them to the Major League Baseball draft out of high school.
“I think they will,” Elson said. “I just don’t know when it will happen, but when the momentum to get that going actually it does take place, I think when it happens, it will be probably more on a conference by conference basis and the SEC is so all in on baseball in so many ways. Given opportunities to fully fund but come close to it, they can do it.”
In the 2023 MLB draft, 113 high school players were drafted.
Elson has a connection to Hot Springs.
“I live in Little Rock for most of the time,” Elson said. “I have been in Arkansas 23 years. I have spent a lot of time in Hot Springs. I love the history of it. I love the geography of the mountains. I love the connection to baseball here.”
Elson did all of the voice over work for the Hot Springs Historic Baseball Trail.
“I have really great memories here,” Elson said. “This is one of my favorite places in the whole state. The baseball trail first and foremost. It is just so cool that spring training for Major League Baseball started here. That Honus Wagner, Ty Cobb, Babe Ruth and the list goes on.
“I love how people in Hot Springs and the business community have coalesced around that and how they built Majestic Park, which I think is a really special place for baseball.”