'I don't have any problem with anything' – Arkansas coach Dave Van Horn pushes back on one narrative surrounding Tennessee baseball
There are some folks in the media this season who have suggested that the Tennessee Vols baseball team takes too many offensive timeouts during games. Last month, a reporter who covers Arkansas asked Razorbacks head coach Dave Van Horn how his team handles all of the things that Tennessee does to "delay a game". "We […]
There are some folks in the media this season who have suggested that the Tennessee Vols baseball team takes too many offensive timeouts during games.
Last month, a reporter who covers Arkansas asked Razorbacks head coach Dave Van Horn how his team handles all of the things that Tennessee does to "delay a game".
"We told our guys before the series, let's don't worry about all that stuff, just play ball," said Van Horn in May. "Whether it's Tennessee or a west coast school or whoever, a lot of times that goes on. They've changed some of the rules, so you can't do it as much. It used to be you could call timeout all the time or infielders could go visit pitchers [to] disrupt things and break rhythm [to] try to frustrate people. A couple of times when they took some offensive timeouts, it was two quick outs and they're trying to just calm down a little bit. We had a lead, they were trying to break the rhythm of the pitcher. It's all gamesmanship. It is what it is."
Ahead of the Super Regional showdown between Tennessee and Arkansas, Van Horn was again asked about the Vols' usage of offensive timeouts.
Van Horn quickly noted that he doesn't have a problem with anything Tennessee does when it comes to timeouts.
"I don't really think it's any different than some other teams," said Van Horn. "And I mean, it doesn't really stand out to me that there's a lot of delay things going on. I think what I just tell our teams every weekend is just do what we can do. Don't get distracted, don't let the other stuff get in your way of being focused on your at bat or your pitch or making a play. And easier said than done, but I don't have any problem with anything."
It sounds like the Arkansas media is trying to make a story out of nothing. As Van Horn noted in May, it's nothing more than gamesmanship — it's just part of competing.
While Van Horn may not have a problem with the offensive timeouts, there is one person who will play in the Fayetteville Super Regional who absolutely hates the stoppages — Vols LHP Liam Doyle.
"I don't necessarily like when offenses take offensive timeouts," said Doyle to Rob Friedman (the Pitching Ninja) earlier this week. "I know it's part of the game now, and I know even my own school does it sometimes, but as a pitcher, you're in the competitive moment. I feel like it doesn't really do anything but just take up more time. It's not going to throw me off my game. It's not going to do anything like that. It's just maybe even going to piss me off more."
