OMAHA, NE ― Everyone in the Arkansas dugout knew to give the silent treatment − except the batboy.
Gage Wood was in the midst of arguably the best-pitched game in College World Series history, a 19-strikeout no-hitter where the lone batter who reached base was hit by a pitch. It was the first no-hitter in Omaha since 1960 and only the third ever as Arkansas won, 3-0, against Murray State.
‘No one talked about it in the dugout except for G-Baby, our batboy,’ outfielder Charles Davalan said. ‘ … He came back after at the eighth and we went one, two, three. G-Baby said, ‘Is Gage going out for the no-no?”
Wood knew that he had a no-hitter going. He had a perfect game that ended with the eighth-inning hit batter, a moment about which he said, ‘I screwed it over.’
But coming off the mound, he had only one thought.
‘We’re not going home,’ Wood said.
Wood’s gem came in an elimination game after the Razorbacks lost their CWS opener to LSU. With the win, Arkansas will face LSU or UCLA on June 17 for a spot in the semifinals.
Catcher Ryder Helfrick called his own game, something that’s unusual in college. In most cases, a coach will call pitches. But Helfrick got to call his own with an assist from what coach Dave Van Horn called ‘educated suggestions.’
The primary set-up pitch for Wood was his fastball, which touched as high as 98 mph with what Murray State players described as a rising effect.
‘It was really special, I’d say,’ Helfrick said. ‘I think for him to do that and just be able to catch the last ball, give him a big hug. It was awesome. I think everybody was really fired up for him. The main thing is we’re still here and we’re still playing.’
The Racers made their name as the scrappy underdogs, a No. 4 seed that ran through the Oxford Regional against Ole Miss and Georgia Tech and the Durham Super Regional against Duke to reach Omaha for the first time ever. Murray State has a strong offense, but those players simply couldn’t touch Wood, who threw 83 strikes in 119 pitches.
‘The strikes weren’t just over the heart,’ Racers leadoff hitter Jonathan Hogart said. ‘ … I got maybe got one or two pitches over the plate the entire day.’
After the game, Wood exchanged hugs with Murray State players, including one, Conner Cunningham, who attended the same high school.
Wood, considered a potential first-round pick in next month’s MLB draft, wasn’t a sure thing to be here. He suffered an injury in February and missed nearly two months. Van Horn admitted he hadn’t known then whether Wood would be able to return this season. Even still, he had no hesitation letting Wood finish the game, even at well over 100 pitches.
‘There’s nothing being said or talked about our dugout whatsoever,’ Van Horn said. ‘We’re just going to let him roll. And, no, there was no chance he was coming out after eight. And he did a super job. So proud of him.’
Aria Gerson covers Vanderbilt athletics for The Tennessean. Contact her at agerson@gannett.com or on X @aria_gerson.