ROGERS — Hunter Wood has not yet began his junior year of high school at Rogers Heritage, but the right-handed pitcher verbally committed over the weekend to play baseball at the University of Arkansas in two years.
Wood, who moved to Northwest Arkansas prior to his sophomore year, said the chance to play for the Razorbacks is a dream come true after attending baseball camps in Fayetteville growing up.
He said there was no real need to wait.
“They’ve been talking to me for a while and they gave me the offer I wanted,” Wood said. “So we just decided to seal the deal.”
Wood was also considering Texas, Louisiana State University and Miami. Coaches from those schools had shown interest in Wood, but not yet made scholarship offers.
It looks like Wood won’t be the only Razorback commit to play for the War Eagles this season. Catcher Blake Baxendale, who played at Bentonville last season, committed to the Hogs in the spring and transferred to Heritage, according to coach Keith Kilgore.
Kilgore said the commitment is special for Wood and the War Eagle program.
“It’s rare for a young man to commit at such a young age,” Kilgore said. “But he’s a tremendous athlete. I’m sure it takes a lot of pressure off him for his junior and senior years. It’s rare for most athletes to have the opportunity to play at the Division I level. It’s a tremendous opportunity for Hunter.”
Despite the fact that both players committed so early, Kilgore believes it’s a new beginning.
“That will serve to push both players to be even better,” Kilgore said. “It’s just tremendous for both guys.”
Wood recently finished a busy summer in which he played for the Upper Deck Cougars select team from Chicago and the Dulin Dodgers out of Memphis.
He also played for the Mid-South Select team out of Tulsa, which played in the Premier Baseball National Championships. The tournament was played in Northwest Arkansas two weeks ago.
The 6-foot-1, 160-pounder threw a shutout to help the Mid-South team advance to the championship round.
All that baseball has helped him become a more consistent pitcher, Wood said.
“I’ve improved my curveball, got better command of my change and developed a cutter,” Wood said.
Wood finished 8-3 with a 3.75 earned run average and 94 strikeouts in 61 2/3 innings as a sophomore at Heritage. He also hit .327 with a team-high 33 runs scored for the War Eagles, who earned a share of the 7A-West Conference title.