By Nate Allen
Special to the News-Times
FAYETTEVILLE - Arkansas pitching coach Wes Johnson probably doesn’t know quite as much now about the Mississippi State Bulldogs as he once did.
The Bulldogs (12-6), for whom Johnson served as pitching coach in 2016, and the Razorbacks (14-4), open their SEC season in a 3-game SEC West series starting tonight at Baum Stadium.
On the SEC Network’s Bases Loaded “whip around” coverage around the league, the Razorbacks and Bulldogs play at 6:30 tonight and then at 7 p.m. Saturday as the SEC Network’s game of the night and closing the series at 1 p.m. Sunday.
Johnson worked for veteran Mississippi State coach John Cohen, who is now the school's athletic director.
“Obviously, he coached a couple of those kids last year and was around them,” Arkansas coach Dave Van Horn said of his new pitching coach’s experience with Mississippi State.
“But they have a completely new coaching staff there now with John Cohen becoming athletic director and Andy Cannizaro, coming in and coaching. He (Cannizaro) coached LSU’s hitters last year. So we kind of know Andy’s tendencies from what he did at LSU. But not a bunch.”
Last year’s Bulldogs tendencies tended to the sensational: 40-14-1 and finishing 10th or 11th in the various polls with 11 Bulldogs taken in the draft, including first-round draft choice pitcher Dakota Hudson.
Though Cannizaro coaches with a different style than Cohen, the Bulldogs do return some 2016 stalwarts including preseason All-American outfielders Jake Magnum, currently hitting .403 and doubling as a left-hander reliever, and Brent Rooker, batting .431 with five home runs and 27 RBI, and Friday night starting pitcher Konnor Pilkington, a lefty who is 2-2 with a 1.74 earned run average.
Peyton Plumlee (2-1, 1.80 ERA), a right-handed junior college transfer, starts Saturday night for Mississippi State.
Neither Van Horn nor Cannizaro has announced a Sunday starting pitcher.
Tonight, Van Horn starts sophomore right-hander Blaine Knight, 1-1, 2.79 ERA with 23 strikeouts against one walk in 19 1-3 innings, and Saturday night Trevor Stephan, 3-0, 0.75 ERA with 32 strikeouts against seven walks in 24 innings.
Knight is sold on Johnson, the coach in general plus Johnson’s knowledge of Mississippi State.
Senior outfielder Jake Arledge .393, leads an Arkansas attack hitting an SEC team-leading 25 home runs.
Mississippi State has clouted 19 home runs, good for second in the SEC.
“Coach Johnson brings a lot of energy, not just to the pitchers but to the whole team,” Knight said. “You cannot help but have good time playing baseball when he’s around. I’m glad he left Mississippi State and came here. He knows their lineup pretty well, so as a staff, we’ll get together with him and figure out what we need to do against them.”
It won’t be easy even with Johnson’s input, Knight knows.
“Offensively, they still have got Jake Mangum, who was probably one of the top hitters in the country last year, and they still have got all the main power guys back,” Knight said. “Hopefully, I can do what I am supposed to do and keep them down a little bit.”
In Starkville, Mississippi State won the last three of Arkansas’ season-ending 13-game losing streak in Van Horn’s first losing season with the Razorbacks.
Arkansas junior left fielder Luke Bonfield, a member of Arkansas’ 2015 College World Series team, vows this is a typical Van Horn team, unlike last year’s atypical season.
“I feel like we are coming together real nice,” Bonfield said.
“Our offense has kind of found its stride and guys know their roles and what they are supposed to do. The pitching has been good all year, and I have no doubt it will continue to be great.”
While still searching for a Sunday starter, Van Horn believes he’s found his closer, senior Cannon Chadwick (2-0, 1.46 ERA).
“He is the guy we’ll go to late,” Van Horn said.
“And not just necessarily at the close, but earlier if the game is on the line and it’s a jam situation and starting to get away from us. He has gotten a lot of big outs.”