Will a batch of home run balls clear new fence at NCAA regional at KU’s field?
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- Kansas has 102 homers in 58 games, two shy of the 2025 record.
- Missouri State has 104 homers in 53 games, while Arkansas has 96 in 59 games.
- KU junior Tyson LeBlanc tied Tony Thompson (2009) as KU single‑season homer leader.
Kansas baseball fans standing or seated on bleachers and lawn chairs in “The Backyard” — an area for spectators located behind a temporary see-through chain-link fence in left field — may wind up chasing a bundle of home run balls during NCAA regional action Friday through Monday at Hoglund Ballpark.
The No. 13-ranked Kansas Jayhawks, the No. 15 overall seed (out of 16) in a regional that includes Northeastern, Arkansas and Missouri State, enter Friday’s noon battle against the Northeastern Huskies just two home runs shy of tying the school record for homers in a single season.
KU (42-16) under the direction of fourth-year coach Dan Fitzgerald has blasted 102 home runs in 58 games, just two homers shy of the school-record 104 hit in 60 games during the 2025 season.
Third most single-season homers in KU history is a tie between Fitzgerald’s 2023 KU team (75) and Ritch Price’s KU squad (75) back in 2006. Fitzgerald’s Jayhawks also hit 68 homers, fifth most in a season in KU history, in 2024. Price’s Jayhawks hit 74 in 2004.
“They hit a lot of home runs,” Arkansas baseball coach Dave Van Horn said Monday, referring to the Jayhawks.
Missouri State and Arkansas also have hit a healthy number of home runs and figure to keep fans in “The Backyard” busy in coming days.
Unranked Missouri State (34-19) has slugged 104 home runs in 53 games. The No. 14-ranked Razorbacks (39-20) have clubbed 96 homers in 59 contests. Northeastern’s Huskies (38-20) have just 58 homers in 58 games. The Huskies’ strength is team speed. Northeastern leads the country in stolen bases (210 in 253 attempts). Carmelo Musacchia has stolen 44 bases in 54 attempts, while Harrison Feinberg has 42 thefts in 48 attempts.
Back to the home run front, KU junior Tyson LeBlanc recently tied Tony Thompson (2009) as the Jayhawks’ single-season home run leader with 21.
LeBlanc, whose record-tying home run was a grand slam in Friday’s 9-2 Big 12 tournament semifinal win over Oklahoma State, has 60 RBIs. Also for KU, Augusto Mungarrieta and Josh Dykhoff have 15 homers apiece. Tyson Owens is one back at 14 home runs.
KU has four players with seven home runs. They are: Cade Baldridge (42 RBIs), Jordan Bach (43 RBIs), Brady Ballinger (43 RBIs) and Daniel Osoria (40 RBIs).
“I think we have power throughout. I think it’s different because it’s really balanced,” KU coach Fitzgerald said Monday. “Tyson has 21, but it’s a bunch of guys with 10 and 16. Look at Auggie (Mungarrieta) and Dykoff, and also that number is really growing, but it’s a bunch of guys. Dylan (Schlotterback, three HRs) has three or four, Cade has seven, eight. So yes, there’s a lot of power throughout.”
Arkansas’ leading home run leader, Camden Kozeal, has 20 HRs and 70 RBIs. Teammates Ryder Helfrick and TJ Pompey have each hit 15 homers. Helfrick has 49 RBIs, Pompey 38.
Missouri State has three players with 16 homers: Curry Sutherland (52 RBIs), Carter Bergman (44 RBIs) and Taeg Gollert (64 RBIs). Northeastern has one player in double-digit home runs. Feinberg has socked 16 homers with 63 RBIs.
The Jayhawks have been known to hit their home runs in bunches.
Dykoff, Mungarrieta and Jordan Bach hit back-to-back-to-back homers in the seventh inning of Saturday’s 9-0 Big 12 tourney title win over West Virginia.
KU on April 2 hit four consecutive home runs (by Owens, Max Solizjr, Schlotterback and LeBlanc) in the ninth inning in a 14-12 win over Utah at Hoglund Ballpark. LeBlanc’s homer was a two-run walk-off blast that busted a 12-12 tie.
KU tied an NCAA record by hitting five consecutive home runs in a 29-1 run-rule victory over Minnesota on March 12, 2025, at Minnesota. Chase Diggins, Max Soliz, Brady Counsell, Brady Ballinger and Jackson Hauge were the five Jayhawks to homer. KU tied a school record for homers in one game (seven) that day.
This story was originally published May 28, 2026 at 6:00 AM with the headline "Will a batch of home run balls clear new fence at NCAA regional at KU’s field?."
