April 21, 2008

Fayetteville, AR (UWIRE) -- With a weekend series win over Tennessee, Arkansas has won its last two series in Southeastern Conference play after losing the first four.

The Razorbacks entered Sunday in sole possession of second place in the SEC West and if the SEC Tournament were to start then, Arkansas would be the last team in.

That's not necessarily a bad thing for a team that has struggled to find its identity throughout the first month of the SEC season. It's been well-documented the losses Arkansas suffered in its pitching rotation from last year with the departures of Nick Schmidt, Jess Todd and Duke Welker to the big leagues.

Arkansas pitchers have been much maligned throughout the season and the bullpen has been unable to close out large leads at times.

But with sporadic bats providing only minimal runs, the Razorback pitching staff has become the saving grace of the club.

Dallas Keuchel and Stephen Richards have proved to be a tough tag team in back-to-back Friday night nail-biters - both Arkansas wins. Keuchel pitched a gem last weekend at Florida and Richards struck out six batters and worked out of a bases-loaded jam with one out to record the save Friday night against the Vols.

And then there's the recent addition of a surging Justin Wells to the weekend rotation. In his Saturday outing against Tennessee, Wells pitched a full nine innings, giving up just four runs on eight hits and striking out nine batters in a no-decision.

Wells said he believes the team is beginning to hit its stride.

"I've always said we have a lot of talent," Wells said. "But we've got to prove it. We've got to show it. I think we've been playing pretty well lately...and stuff is finally starting to fall for us. We have a good team that can play with the best of them."

And against two of the better teams in the SEC, Florida and Tennessee, Keuchel and Wells were a combined 3-0.

Keuchel is now 4-1 on the season with an ERA slightly above 3.0. Razorback pitching coach Dave Jorn credits a Saturday win at LSU for Keuchel's second half success."I think he really realized what it took mentally to stay in the game for a long period of time," Jorn said.

In that game, Keuchel pitched a complete game, 7-hitter, but the Razorbacks fell to the Tigers. In the same weekend, Wells began to find his niche, pitching a then career-long 7.1 innings of scoreless relief as the Razorbacks came back for a 14-13 win in 10 innings.

Since that weekend, Arkansas is 5-6 in SEC play, losing two games in a rain-shortened weekend at Vanderbilt and blowing an 8-run lead, and what would have been the first SEC series win in the rubber-match with Auburn.

The Razorbacks also look to have solidified their weekend pitching rotation, with the sophomore Keuchel becoming the staff ace and Friday night starter, and Wells and Cliff Springston pitching Saturday and Sunday, respectively.

Arkansas' midweek pitching is still a concern, but the Razorbacks could get a bit of a reprieve with Northern Colorado coming into Baum Stadium for a 2-game set Tuesday and Wednesday.

And while no SEC schedule is ideal, Arkansas' chances to continue its second half push are favorable. With a series win at SEC West-leading Ole Miss this weekend, Arkansas would claim first place with back-to-back home series against Alabama and South Carolian upcoming. The Razorbacks then conclude their conference season on the road at division-dwelling Mississippi State.

Of course, Arkansas will need to show more improvement on the offensive side of the ball, but with continued production from the pitching staff, those woes could take care of themselves.

With impressive back-to-back weekends, the Razorbacks have provided a new-found hope for a season almost chalked up as a loss.

(C) 2008 Arkansas Traveler via UWIRE