Looking back at Turner's all-time regional performance in Stillwater
STILLWATER, Okla. — The outside noise didn’t seem to bother Michael Turner this weekend.
Just a week after receiving criticism for comments made at the SEC Tournament, including a viral rant that led to the suspension of a local sports talk radio show host, the catcher turned in an MVP performance that helped Arkansas knock off No. 7 seed Oklahoma State and win the Stillwater Regional.
Turner was behind the dish for all 37 innings, made several great defensive plays and went 8 for 18 with a double, two home runs and 11 RBIs — seven of which came with two outs — at the plate. He also had four free passes (three walks and a HBP) and was successful in his first stolen base attempt of the season.
Head coach Dave Van Horn described his weekend as “unbelievable.”
“That’s a tough position back there in the heat,” Van Horn said. “Catching, throwing and sweating and grinding and calling pitches, it can be a little stressful. And then trying to hit. That takes a tough individual to do what he does.”
Through the Auburn series, Turner was the Razorbacks’ most consistent hitter. He was hitting a team-high .328 and was even better in conference play, with a .333 average in 24 SEC games.
However, just as Arkansas hit its skid, so did Turner. He went just 3 for 26 with one RBI and eight strikeouts in series losses to Vanderbilt and Alabama that cost the team the SEC West title and likely the right to host a regional.
When he went 0 for 4 against Alabama in the first game at the SEC Tournament, his batting average actually dipped below .300 for the first time in three months. Turner started to turn things around in the loss to Florida, going 2 for 4 with a home run, and then carried it into Stillwater.
In the opening game against Grand Canyon, Turner notched three hits and three RBIs. He capped the big second inning with a two-out, two run single and then added an RBI single in the sixth.
“I’m just trying to help the team win,” Turner said afterward. “I came up in a situation with guys on, so to get those hits and RBIs and some extra runs for the team, I’m excited about it.”
He delivered again in the winner’s bracket game, playing a huge part in the Razorbacks rallying back from two separate five-run deficits against Oklahoma State on Saturday.
Turner’s two-out, two-run single in the fifth inning pulled the Razorbacks within 7-5 and then he hit a two-out solo home run in the seventh, jumpstarting a quick three runs that once again pulled them within 10-8. The next inning, Turner drew the second bases-loaded walk that tied the game in the Cowboys’ eighth-inning collapse.
It looked like he’d be the hero Sunday night, too, when he launched a go-ahead, two-run home run in the bottom of the eighth. Even though Oklahoma State ended up winning in 10 innings to force an extra game, Turner seemed to be soaking in the experience.
“The last two games have probably been the most fun games I've been a part of,” Turner said after the 14-10 loss. “A lot of offense. It's fun to be a part of it and watch it as well.”
There wasn’t as much scoring in Monday’s winner-take-all matchup, but it was still an intense game that came down to the very end. It was yet another clutch hit by Turner that gave Arkansas some breathing room.
With two outs in the ninth, he provided some insurance by smacking second-team All-American Justin Campbell’s 3-1 pitch down the right field line for a two-run double to push the lead to 7-3.
“Campbell just kept throwing changeups to our left-handers and we told them, ‘Just sit soft. If he throws a fastball, just hope it doesn’t hit you. Look for a breaking ball or a changeup,’” Van Horn said. “He was really the only lefty that stuck with the plan, and finally after the fastball that was in that they complained about, he was just sitting on something soft, and he got it, and he hooked it down the line.”
As big as that hit was, Turner’s biggest contribution in the final game was arguably in the field.
After spectacular plays by Cayden Wallace and Robert Moore ended scoring threats in the second and third innings, Oklahoma State was once again in business in the fourth. With runners on first and second and only one out, Van Horn decided it was time to make a pitching change.
However, the change came after starter Zack Morris threw a first-pitch ball to Chase Adkison. On that pitch, Turner noticed Caeden Trenkle — the Cowboys’ speedy center fielder — taking a big lead off first because the infield, including Peyton Stovall, was shifted some to the left.
On Kole Ramage’s first pitch, Turner immediately fired to first and Stovall got the tag down for an out that stood even after Oklahoma State challenged the play.
“It kind of worked out perfect when Kole came in because I wanted to talk to Stovall, but I didn’t want everyone to know what was going on,” Turner said. “We just discussed it right there, and I told Kole we’re going to go outside fastball right here because it was a righty up. He put it in a perfect spot and it was a bang-bang play.”
It was a risky move because Stovall had to cheat toward first as the ball was being delivered, creating a big hole on the right side of the infield, but it paid off in a big way because Trenkle became the second out.
Ramage then struck out Adkison to end the inning, preventing red-hot Roc Riggio from coming to the plate with two batter on and preserving the shutout for a few more innings.
“That was all Michael Turner,” Van Horn said. “He saw the field…and he saw that we had a chance to do it. That was a huge play in the game. That was a momentum killer right there. That’s what you want behind the plate.”
Later in the game, with runners on the corners and only one out, Turner was set up inside and Hagen Smith missed his spot badly, causing him to lunge to catch it. The wild pitch could have potentially scored a run and caused things to spiral, but instead, the freshman zeroed in and eventually got out of a bases-loaded jam with back-to-back strikeouts.
In the Grand Canyon game, Turner ended the second inning with a strike ‘em out, throw ‘em out double play, nailing Tyler Wilson trying to steal second. The play clearly swung the momentum in favor of Arkansas, resulting in a four-run outburst in the bottom half of the inning.
“The dugout erupted on it and the throw was incredible,” Van Horn said. “Not only was it on the money, it looked like the batter was almost in his way in my opinion. If he hadn't thrown him out, I would've ask for interference or a review on that if possible, but he threw on the money with some velocity.”
Another play that doesn’t necessarily show up in the box score for Turner came in the seventh inning of that game. Connor Noland was drilled with a couple of line drives, but recovered in time to make both plays. He credited Turner for helping him locate the ball each time.
“I had no clue,” Noland said. “When it's hit that hard, I don't know if it's bouncing off me, going front or back side, so getting help locating that was big-time.”
For a guy who spent the last four years at Kent State, where his only postseason appearance came in the 2018 Lubbock Regional as a freshman, it was an incredible performance on the biggest stage of his career.
He and the Razorbacks will now head to North Carolina for the Chapel Hill Super Regional — the first time he’s ever reached this point of the NCAA Tournament, but the fourth straight time Arkansas has made it this far.
“I would never have been in this situation a couple years ago,” Turner said. “So I'm super excited about it and just trying to do everything I can to help the team win.”
The previous Arkansas teams that made deep postseason runs had the likes of Grant Koch and Casey Opitz behind the plate. Turner is a different kind of catcher, but — as seen with the team’s struggles that coincided with his slump — he is just as important to the team’s success.
“I’ve always said catching is the best position on the field,” Van Horn said. “You’re the only one facing the whole field and you’re involved in every play. You’ve got to have special people back there if you’re going to have a good team.”