As I posted last night, all in all, not playing Friday was the best move for Ole Miss. The absolute worst thing that could have happened would have been burning Hoglund because he throws 2 or 3 innings and then it rains. Arkansas could have managed that situation better than Ole Miss since Hoglund is a bigger gun than Wicklander and the Hogs could have inserted Vermillion. A Bobby Wahl situation would have been detrimental for the Rebels in this series.
Look, it's baseball, and a game can play out any dang way in a small sample size, but I think the first three innings are critical for Ole Miss today -- in both games. Arkansas has really struggled the first time through the lineup against league teams, scoring just six total runs in the first three innings of the nine SEC games. But they are pretty dominant later in games. Holgund and Nikhazy are both better after the first time through the order. So the Rebels need to win that early battle and not let the Razorbacks buck those early struggles.
The lineup leaves something to be desired. There's not a great answer, but without Elko this lineup needs some versatility. Mike can't get locked into strikeout-high options without upside. I think eventually Harris is the best option for DH and just let him hit lefties. You'll need him to do that eventually so give it 10 games to see what happens.
Look, it's baseball, and a game can play out any dang way in a small sample size, but I think the first three innings are critical for Ole Miss today -- in both games. Arkansas has really struggled the first time through the lineup against league teams, scoring just six total runs in the first three innings of the nine SEC games. But they are pretty dominant later in games. Holgund and Nikhazy are both better after the first time through the order. So the Rebels need to win that early battle and not let the Razorbacks buck those early struggles.
The lineup leaves something to be desired. There's not a great answer, but without Elko this lineup needs some versatility. Mike can't get locked into strikeout-high options without upside. I think eventually Harris is the best option for DH and just let him hit lefties. You'll need him to do that eventually so give it 10 games to see what happens.
