Ozark outfielder Rylan Sutton is making a similar favorable impression as a freshman that teammate Hudson Roberts did two years ago.
Following his freshman season, Roberts received an offer from Arkansas and committed to the Razorbacks.
Over the past several weeks, Sutton has made a good enough showing for himself to lock down the Tigers’ starting right field job.
“Rylan reminds me of my freshman self,” Roberts said. “How he plays is kind of how I played as a freshman. He is going to be good. There is a lot of potential and upside with him. I'm going to take him under my wing and mentor him.”
Sutton has quickly gained an appreciation for the leadership and guidance Ozark’s veterans have provided him.
“It's been a great learning curve having all these older guys take me under their wing and put their faith in me,” Sutton said. “They’ve done nothing but care for me and trust me. I appreciate everything they've done.”
Last week, Sutton collected a pair of hits in Ozark’s loss to Glendale and delivered an RBI single in the Tigers’ win at Springfield Catholic.
The left-hander has shown off an exceptionally strong arm on throws from the outfield. He’s pitched at the jayvee level.
Sutton is on a short list of Tigers freshmen in the history of Ozark’s program to start as a freshman.
“At first, I felt a lot of pressure,” he said. “Now, I'm out here having fun.”
Indeed, by all accounts, he’s handling himself well.
“He's taking advantage of opportunities,” coach Justin Sundlie said. “He gets in the box and tries to put a good swing on the ball. He doesn't swing at a lot of bad pitches. Sometimes, a fresh perspective at the plate can be a powerful thing. (Opponents) don’t know what to expect from him. He's going to be a really good player.”
