Isaiah Campbell

With a father in the Air Force, Campbell was well-versed with picking up and moving as a child. He was born in Portugal and spent time in Germany and Turkey as well. He’s settled in at Arkansas for four years now, and the redshirt junior is reaping the benefits of patiently developing into the Razorbacks’ ace. Campbell was expected to be a breakout pitcher for Arkansas in 2017, but bone spurs in his elbow forced him to redshirt and he was inconsistent as a redshirt sophomore in 2018. He opted to turn down the Angels last June as a 24th-round pick in order to prove what he could do if he put everything together. This year, Campbell has proven to be one of the best Friday starters in the Southeastern Conference. Campbell has an excellent, 6-foot-4, 225-pound frame, and he’s managed to maintain that weight this year. In 2018, he lost strength and stamina as the season wore on and struggled as a result. Campbell’s step forward this year has largely come because he’s significantly improved the power, shape and command of his slider. In the past, Campbell relied on a fringy, 75-80 mph curveball. Now, his slider is much harder in the 84-87 mph range, and he can confidently locate the pitch down in the zone. Having an above-average breaking ball has made his already above-average, 92-95 mph fastball play up even more. He’s also developed a much-improved split-changeup that flashes above-average with deception and tumble. Campbell’s command and control have significantly improved. Last year, his arm struggled to stay in-sync with his lower half, and he struggled to locate when trying to throw down in the zone. Now, he fills the bottom quadrants with his fastball and slider while also elevating his fastball up and out of the zone with purpose as needed. Campbell has some injuries and inconsistent performances in his past, but this year he’s started to convince scouts that he can remain a starter because of his improved secondary offerings. He’s shown the makings of a future No. 3 or No. 4 starter.