FAYETTEVILLE -- Several University of Arkansas baseball signees could be selected over the three-day, 20-round Major League Baseball Draft that begins Sunday.
The Razorbacks have 12 signees who are ranked among the top 290 draft prospects by Baseball America. Eight Arkansas signees are in the publication's top 115.
The headliners are third baseman Aidan Miller from Mitchell High School in Trinity, Fla., and shortstop Walker Martin from Eaton, Colo. Miller is rated the 20th-best prospect in the draft by Baseball America, and Martin is rated 24th.
"We don't know what's going to go on with Aidan Miller or Walker Martin," Arkansas Coach Dave Van Horn said June 27. "I could go on and on. We are talking with them, trying to figure out what kind of money they're going to demand to sign and what they're really thinking. Do they really want to go to school? We're having all those conversations.
"It's just what you do. And then you throw in the transfer portal -- they kind of tie into each other. You might not want to get too many guys out of the portal if you find out you're [not] going to lose some of your incoming class."
This year's draft has a different feel for the Razorbacks than last year when Arkansas had only two signees drafted and lost only one to pro baseball. The Razorbacks had nine players from their 2022 team drafted and sign last year.
Arkansas' latest high school signing class is ranked the best in college baseball. It includes 13 players who are ranked in the top 100 of Perfect Game's recruiting rankings -- the most ever for one signing class in that publication's rankings.
Most of those players are also draft risks.
In addition to Miller and Martin, the Razorbacks' class includes left-handed pitcher Adam Hachman of Timberland High School in Wentzville, Mo.; right-handed pitcher Dylan Questad of Waterford, Wis.; right-hander Gabe Gaeckle of Aptos, Calif.; right-hander Barrett Kent of Pottsboro, Texas; shortstop Nazzan Zanetello of St. Louis' Christian Brothers College High School and Florissant, Mo.; and outfielder Kendall George of Atascocita High School in Humble, Texas. All are ranked between 95th and 115th by Baseball America.
Zanetello, who is rated the No. 52 prospect in MLB.com's Pipeline rankings, will reportedly attend the draft at Lumen Field in Seattle.
Hachman was rated 46th by Baseball America earlier this year, but fell some after he reportedly tore his ulnar collateral ligament during the spring. The same happened to Arkansas right-hander Jaxon Wiggins, who is ranked 86th by Baseball America and is expected to go pro after he missed the 2023 season due to a torn UCL that required Tommy John surgery in February.
During an interview with Little Rock's KABZ-FM in May, Arkansas pitching coach Matt Hobbs indicated UCL tears don't scare pro teams from drafting players.
"We had a kid that was committed to us last year ... that had Tommy John surgery after his third high school start, and he still signed for, I think, $1.8 million -- with the surgery and had not even been throwing," Hobbs said, likely referencing right-hander Cole Phillips, a second-round pick of the Atlanta Braves. "[Former Arkansas pitcher] Peyton Pallette was kind of the same thing."
Pallette's injury timeline in 2022 was similar to Wiggins' this year. Pallette, of Benton, was drafted by the Chicago White Sox in the second round of last year's draft and signed for a reported $1.5 million.
"I could see a team taking a chance on Jaxon," Hobbs said in May. "He's physical, he's big, he's everything you want in a pitcher. He had pitched really well in the fall ... and put some good stuff on tape. People had seen him. Scouting directors and some heavy, heavy hitters had been in to see him, especially when we played against the [Texas] Rangers' instructional league team [last October]."
Other Arkansas signees ranked by Baseball America are: catcher Ryder Helfrick of Clayton Valley High School and Discovery Bay, Calif.; left-hander Hunter Dietz of Calvary Christian High School and Trinity, Fla.; left-hander Colin Fisher of Noble, Okla.; and shortstop Nolan Souza of Punahou High School in Honolulu.
"You can dream about getting all these guys. We don't want to dream around here. We're more about reality," Van Horn said. "So we've tried to handle some things, take care of some things and hoping we can maybe sneak one of those three or four position players that are going to sign through.
"We've got some other guys that are going to be really good that are not going to be drafted, or they're going to be drafted low and they're probably going to make it to school.
"Pitching-wise, with the high school kids, we're going to get some of these guys. We may lose a couple, but we're going to get a lot of those guys through and that is going to be a really good pitching class.
"The position players, it might be a little more difficult to get some of these high-end hitters, unfortunately, but we're doing everything we can to figure it out."
Four players from Arkansas' 2023 team are ranked in Baseball America's prospect rankings -- outfielders Jace Bohrofen (107), Tavian Josenberger (248) and Jared Wegner (312), and left-hander Hunter Hollan (146). Of those players, Wegner is the only one who does not have eligibility remaining.
"I think the obvious ones that are going to be pretty good picks are Josenberger and Wegner," Van Horn said.
"I figure someone is going to sign him, but I would love to have Hunter back."
Multiple other Razorbacks are eligible for the draft. The most prominent of that group is third baseman Caleb Cali, who Van Horn said is "up in the air" about his future.
"If they don't get drafted, will they take free-agent money and how much would they ask for?" Van Horn said. "There's a limit, and is that going to be enough to skip your last year? We have a few of those guys out there.
"I mean, we won't know where we're at, honestly, for maybe another [few] weeks."
Arkansas has seven transfers from other Division I teams who have verbally committed this offseason. Draft-eligible players from that group are right-hander Craig Yoho from Indiana, outfielders Ty Wilmsmeyer and Ross Lovich from Missouri, infielder Jack Wagner from Tarleton State and left-hander Stone Hewlett from Kansas. None of the transfer commitments are included in Baseball America's prospect rankings.
At a glance
TV Rounds 1-2, 6 p.m. Central on Sunday (ESPN, MLB Network)
INTERNET Rounds 3-10, 1 p.m. Central on Monday (MLB.com); Rounds 11-20, 1 p.m. Central on Tuesday (MLB.com)
NO. 1 OVERALL PICK Pittsburgh Pirates