Softball Offseason

[MarlinMan3]

The Sun Belt had zero at-large selections this year. The SEC put 14 in. Think we should pump the brakes on the Sun Belt sunshine.

When at its best, league has a couple NCAA caliber teams. Fact UL’s numbers were near the bottom of the league emphasizes the point Cajuns have a lot of work to do.

In Every organized sport organization i can think of, members of a conference know in advance, before season starts how many slots for postseason they have a chance at as members, with a big exception - the NCAA

And very few of those mentioned above have only one spot

[CajunsSball22]

I agree with most everything in your post, though I am maybe not as confident in some returning players as you are. from a few conversations I have had with players, I am optimistic about Lexie and Sage in the circle, and we do have Mallory back as well. I have heard good things about Haley Hart, but I don't know much about the other new recruits other than names, positions and where they are from.

I am sorry if I seem somewhat negative; I actually have a great deal of faith that we will bounce back from the drop in performance we had this season. JMV is right when he says that this may be the most important off-season inn the history of the program. Given that we were much better this season than we as fans had any right to expect, I believe that Coach Habetz did a great job, and that she will do what is necessary to quickly get us back to our accustomed place in the softball world.

All I’m saying is that we will have many options and they will all have the opportunity to compete in the fall. Don’t think you are being negative, just maybe being cautious, which I am just saying is probably not necessary. Again, we will be ok!!!

[SlickRick]

I watched more softball this year than at any other time, primarily because of the players we lost to the portal. I watched more SBC softball too, a lot more. There's a saying in football about how a team looks getting off the bus...well, we are not very good looking getting off our bus when compared to the higher end schools in the nation and in our own conference. We were small and short at the plate this year and our offensive numbers reflected that. ULM, Coastal, JMU, Marshall just to name a few, all were more physical looking with taller players with longer arms. Hell, we walked the TXState HR hitter 3 times in one game because of her power. You don't need a Lexis Elkins to hit HR's in these parks...most HR's are big pop ups if the wind is in the right direction. But, small is small...you can't fix that if you keep the same small players.

Maybe we can strengthen them up in the fall and develop their full swings better, but that is the harder and riskier way to do it in these times. My Dad was a football coach and he used to say, "I'll take that big, fast running back over that small, fast running back every time". Yeah, I know, that's a different sport, but you don't see the small players getting walked out of fear of the long ball, do you? IMO, we have too many and that needs to be addressed in the portal.

Hard decisions for our new coach must be made. She's knows talent, given her 25 years at Alabama. But, now she's the HC and all those hard decisions falls on her plate. I don't envy her and wouldn't want to be in her shoes. I just hope she welcomes the opportunity the portal now affords a coach to make changes when needed.

In closing, I'll say this. If we don't improve significantly next season, we'll begin to start losing our fanbase, which is already old and that includes my old butt I'll be at the games next season and will make a few away since I'm retiring, but we need a refresh of fans. That's hard to do when you are not winning like we use to. Our attendance this year was amazing considering what happened to our program and the very slow start of the season. Yeah, we did get better, but we knew how limited we were offensively and for most season pitching was a problem too early on. Manufacturing runs with small ball is hard and takes a sequence of hits to score runs. This was as big a factor in losing all those 1 run games as any other. I sat on this reply for awhile, worried it may hurt some feelings, but it is what it is.

Geaux Cajuns!

[CajunsSball22]

I bet you knew him before he was born huh?

Trust me none of you knew me before I was born, lol. That was a long time ago.

[CajunsSball22]

With Erin's build she should be a gap to gap hitter who can hit 4-5 home runs a season. She shouldn't be slapping at all.

Obviously that is your opinion. Personally I have no problems with dual threat players.

[VObserver]

Obviously that is your opinion. Personally I have no problems with dual threat players.

I do not want to talk about any specific player in this discussion, but I believe that the short game is much more effective as a surprise than as a pre-signaled event. One of the most effective bunters in MLB history was Mickey Mantle. No one would ever accuse Mantle of being a short-ball guy, and only those with a death wish would position themselves to effectively defense the bunt.

Obviously, very few people are 5 tool players, but any adult who is fast and well coordinated should be able to hit a ball with authority at least 200'; why would we want to deliberately remove that weapon from their arsenal while simultaneously making their speed a less effective weapon in the short game?

[CajunsSball22]

I do not want to talk about any specific player in this discussion, but I believe that the short game is much more effective as a surprise than as a pre-signaled event. One of the most effective bunters in MLB history was Mickey Mantle. No one would ever accuse Mantle of being a short-ball guy, and only those with a death wish would position themselves to effectively defense the bunt.

Obviously, very few people are 5 tool players, but any adult who is fast and well coordinated should be able to hit a ball with authority at least 200'; why would we want to deliberately remove that weapon from their arsenal while simultaneously making their speed a less effective weapon in the short game?

Again, I love dual threat players!!!

[RoarMan]

I agree with hitting the ball in the gaps. I see practice everyday. I think we will at least double our home runs next year and have a big increase in extra base hits. I have seen everyone coming back swing the bat, except Raenna Liscano so I really don’t know what to expect from her. Mia Liscano, Erin Ardoin, and Dayzja W. all have the ability to drive the ball in the gaps. Dayzja has really improved in that area and I expect her to get even better. Cissy V., Mia Norwood, Gabbie Stutes, Lillian Soto, Emily Smith, and McKayla Ferguson all played this year and return. All have the ability to hit with a little power. Obviously some more than others. Three more that can hit with some power that didn’t play this year, Brooke Otto, Chayne Allan and Lily Knox. Incoming freshman, Haley Hart, Kennedi Stutes, Shyanne Irvin, Natalie Johnson, Miki Watts. All these kids will get an opportunity in the fall. Maybe add 1 are 2 from the portal, not really necessary. Just my opinion, but I believe we will be just fine. We will also have more pitching depth. Relax guys, we have almost 9 months for our coaches to figure this out.?

Let me interject here. You're asking us fans to be patient. You say the coaches have 9 months to figure it out. They do not. They have maybe a week or two. They've got to decide which players they are not going to ask back and which players they are going to go after in the portal. If they don't make moves now, you can expect the same type of team on the field next year.

You say Ardoin, Liscano and Williams have the ability to drive the ball in the gap. Stats do not lie. Combined, those three players had a total of 287 plate appearances. Combined, they had 12 extra base hits. So, they have shown very, very little ability to drive the ball. I don't see that changing.

As far as the other players you mentioned, all totaled, the Cajuns had 1,373 at bats this year. Out of those, they had 78 extra base hits. So, in almost 1300 at bats, they did not drive the ball.

You predict the Cajuns will double their home run output and have a BIG increase in extra bass hits. It could happen. But for it to happen, those players are going to really have to step up. If you didn't notice, the Cajun's three power hitters all regressed from how they performed in previous years. That is not a good sign.

I'm not trying to be Negative Nelly. But, I don't look at this team through rose-colored glasses. I see their flaws, and I clearly see why they did not have the success they were hoping for this year. I think to be successful, the coach is going to have to go in a totally different direction.

Believe me, I want to see this team succeed. As I mentioned in another post, coach has some really tough decisions to make. The question is, is she going to make those decisions going by what she feels in her heart, or, make the decisions that are going to put a team on the field that can play the type of ball to bring them back to the level of play they were once at? Only time will tell. The clock is ticking.

[JMV JustMyView]

Again, I love dual threat players!!!

In my opinion Kayla was the only dual threat slapper. High Average and Speed. Williams could work her way to that level I believe. But I also believe nobody else has demonstrated that consistently.

[JMV JustMyView]

I agree with hitting the ball in the gaps. I see practice everyday. I think we will at least double our home runs next year and have a big increase in extra base hits. I have seen everyone coming back swing the bat, except Raenna Liscano so I really don’t know what to expect from her. Mia Liscano, Erin Ardoin, and Dayzja W. all have the ability to drive the ball in the gaps. Dayzja has really improved in that area and I expect her to get even better. Cissy V., Mia Norwood, Gabbie Stutes, Lillian Soto, Emily Smith, and McKayla Ferguson all played this year and return. All have the ability to hit with a little power. Obviously some more than others. Three more that can hit with some power that didn’t play this year, Brooke Otto, Chayne Allan and Lily Knox. Incoming freshman, Haley Hart, Kennedi Stutes, Shyanne Irvin, Natalie Johnson, Miki Watts. All these kids will get an opportunity in the fall. Maybe add 1 are 2 from the portal, not really necessary. Just my opinion, but I believe we will be just fine. We will also have more pitching depth. Relax guys, we have almost 9 months for our coaches to figure this out.?

I know you see the potential at practice. The issue is what they are doing isn't necessarily translating to the games. We need players who can play when the big lights come on. Regardless I think every position but one is open. That should provide some serious competition this fall.