Arkansas baseball has landed its Ryder Helfrick replacement out of the transfer portal.
Former TCU catcher Nolan Traeger committed to the Razorbacks on Tuesday, June 23. He will have massive shoes to fill after Helfrick turned into a two-way star across two seasons as the Arkansas starter behind the plate.
Traeger just wrapped up his sophomore season with the Horned Frogs. He was a two-year starter who was a second-team All-Big 12 Conference selection as a freshman in 2025.
In 2026, Traeger slashed .289/.399/.414 with four home runs and 34 RBIs. He had eight doubles and scored 20 runs.
Dave Van Horn is consistent in his admiration for players that walk as much as they strikeout, and those stats show why Arkansas was interested in Traeger. The Texas native has drawn 46 walks with 53 strikeouts in his career.
Behind the plate, Traeger boasted a .990 fielding percentage with 10 passed balls. He had nine caught stealings in 42 attempts.
Traeger is the likely starter, but he could have some competition in the form of Carter Rutenbar. The rising sophomore was a catcher coming out of high school, but his bat forced its way into the starting lineup for a good chunk of the 2026 season. Rutenbar made starts at right field, designated hitter and first base, slashing .286/414/.395 with two homers, 30 runs and 18 RBIs.
The Hogs have some recent success in maximizing a former Horned Frog. Outfielder Logan Maxwell transferred to Arkansas for his senior season in 2025 and had a career year with a .356 batting average, a .605 slugging percentage and 12 home runs. He hit five total homers in his previous three college campaigns.
Traeger joins Dawson Bryce (Charlotte), Zeb Allen (Central Arkansas), Ben Cleary (Santa Clara), Wills Maginnis (Georgia State) and AJ Evasco (Kansas State) as position players who have committed to Arkansas out of the portal.
Jackson Fuller covers Arkansas football, basketball and baseball for the Southwest Times Record, part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at jfuller@usatodayco.com or follow him @jacksonfuller16 on X, formerly known as Twitter.
This article originally appeared on Fort Smith Times Record: Former TCU catcher Nolan Traeger commits to Arkansas baseball
