Shocky1 said:
lotta highly recruited/ranked newcomers in both of these line ups
reality is that the strength of this year's team wuz the downtown long ball, if zobac is departing then 4 of the top 5 home run hitters need to be replaced (45 of the 74 homers)
the bears gotta legit opportunity to significantly improve the team batting average next season with more speed (and base running coaching decisions) along with much better pitching with greater control/more strikeouts & stronger infield defense but power could be a problem
Agreed. However, offenses change (and that is okay!). Based on the recruits coming in next year, we really improve on speed despite maybe losing a smidge of power.
I am very excited to see Holly Medina play at Cal. Firecrackers-Rico has produced some of the top slappers to ever play- I can rattle of at least a dozen slapper All-Americans who've played at U of A, UCLA, Tennessee...and Cal! The Reid sisters were a product of the same org.
If you see any clip online (there are several), you see a pure slapper who causes headaches simply by putting the ball in play. In a way, Cal has missed that over the last few years. 57 stolen bases over the last 2 seasons for HM.
"Holly, was also a late find for us and wraps up the 2023 class with the speed we lacked. She is a true triple threat at the plate which is the hardest hitter to defend. Her ability to use all of her tools could make her one of the most dangerous players in college softball. Her speed paired with her offensive IQ makes her an elite baserunner that earned her second in the state of California for stolen bases in high school. She is a really tough out and was player of the year in the Mojave River League. Welcome to Berkeley! Roll on Holly!"- Coach Spencer