2027 Women's Softball Thread

[WRNC]

 

[HookemTexas]

4 hours ago, LonghornFan4Ever said:

SI’s three takeaways from the preseason game last night

Based on this article, Coach White filled the holes he had with the portal.  There's a bit of a logjam in the infield with so much talent.  The outfield is where some of the freshman/sophomores have a chance to break into the lineup at the corner outfield positions since Henry has CF locked down. 

Sneed couldn't secure the role in LF last year but will likely have first shot.  I'm guessing one or both of the freshman may get the spots if they are as advertised.  Additionally, if Abdullah (who was the #1 recruit) is so good you have to play her in the infield, then the likely person that gets moved would be Nichols, but she was pretty solid last year so she may get a shot at the outfield in that scenario.

It's a plethora of talent and a matter of finding spots for them and keeping everyone happy.  Likely will be 2-3 transfers following next season because of the logjam, especially if the 5 for 5 seniors decide to stay as the only senior that's completely out of eligibility would be Vivi Martinez.

[HonkEm]

8 hours ago, HookemTexas said:

Based on this article, Coach White filled the holes he had with the portal.  There's a bit of a logjam in the infield with so much talent.  The outfield is where some of the freshman/sophomores have a chance to break into the lineup at the corner outfield positions since Henry has CF locked down. 

Sneed couldn't secure the role in LF last year but will likely have first shot.  I'm guessing one or both of the freshman may get the spots if they are as advertised.  Additionally, if Abdullah (who was the #1 recruit) is so good you have to play her in the infield, then the likely person that gets moved would be Nichols, but she was pretty solid last year so she may get a shot at the outfield in that scenario.

It's a plethora of talent and a matter of finding spots for them and keeping everyone happy.  Likely will be 2-3 transfers following next season because of the logjam, especially if the 5 for 5 seniors decide to stay as the only senior that's completely out of eligibility would be Vivi Martinez.

The roster looks a lot deeper than it did a year ago. The biggest battle may not be finding starters, but figuring out where to put all the talent. The infield is crowded, while the corner outfield spots seem like the clearest path for some of the younger players to earn at-bats.

I'm still curious about Abdullah. She's obviously an elite prospect, but when I watched her with Team USA, she looked like she had some trouble picking up the ball at times and wasn't always comfortable against top-level pitching. If she's good enough to force her way into the everyday lineup immediately, then someone established may have to change positions. If not, it gives White a little more flexibility while she adjusts to the college game.

Either way, there are only so many spots available. That's a good problem to have, but with this much talent on the roster, I'd be surprised if there aren't a couple of transfers after the season.

[HookemTexas]

43 minutes ago, HonkEm said:

The roster looks a lot deeper than it did a year ago. The biggest battle may not be finding starters, but figuring out where to put all the talent. The infield is crowded, while the corner outfield spots seem like the clearest path for some of the younger players to earn at-bats.

I'm still curious about Abdullah. She's obviously an elite prospect, but when I watched her with Team USA, she looked like she had some trouble picking up the ball at times and wasn't always comfortable against top-level pitching. If she's good enough to force her way into the everyday lineup immediately, then someone established may have to change positions. If not, it gives White a little more flexibility while she adjusts to the college game.

Either way, there are only so many spots available. That's a good problem to have, but with this much talent on the roster, I'd be surprised if there aren't a couple of transfers after the season.

Agree with all points.  If Abdullah isn't ready yet, the infield is already solid.  The question marks are really the corner outfield, but I'm not sure there are many questions.

The positions being replaced by departing seniors (from the World Series starting lineup):

Catcher - probably a slight downgrade considering Atwood's defensive prowess, she was elite.  Offensively, Atwood was of course great, but struggled in the post season.  I think Swan will be serviceable there and she showed up last post season so hopefully that carries over.

Pitcher - I believe Lincoln is a slight upgrade over Citlaly mainly because she's a lefty.  Citlaly was up and down, but she was nails in the post season when Texas needed her most.

2nd Base - Goode was good (pun intended) but you're replacing her with the player of the year who is elite both offensively and defensively.  Texas upgraded.

Left field - pretty much non-existent offensively except for a key Altmeier bomb when they needed it post season.  Defensively it was about average, so whoever takes it over is probably an upgrade over last year.

Right field - offensively, Maloney was speed on the bases, but her average dipped a little.  She didn't have power, but she often turned the lineup over and did it well.  Defensively she had so many outfield assists it was insane.  That's where replacing her will be hard.  Also expecting an offensive upgrade overall.

The team is poised to make another run though (depending on how the new coaches mesh in and get the team going).  I feel like the batting outside of Katie Stewart dipped a bit last year; looking for improvement there for the team overall.

[HonkEm]

9 minutes ago, HookemTexas said:

Agree with all points.  If Abdullah isn't ready yet, the infield is already solid.  The question marks are really the corner outfield, but I'm not sure there are many questions.

The positions being replaced by departing seniors (from the World Series starting lineup):

Catcher - probably a slight downgrade considering Atwood's defensive prowess, she was elite.  Offensively, Atwood was of course great, but struggled in the post season.  I think Swan will be serviceable there and she showed up last post season so hopefully that carries over.

Pitcher - I believe Lincoln is a slight upgrade over Citlaly mainly because she's a lefty.  Citlaly was up and down, but she was nails in the post season when Texas needed her most.

2nd Base - Goode was good (pun intended) but you're replacing her with the player of the year who is elite both offensively and defensively.  Texas upgraded.

Left field - pretty much non-existent offensively except for a key Altmeier bomb when they needed it post season.  Defensively it was about average, so whoever takes it over is probably an upgrade over last year.

Right field - offensively, Maloney was speed on the bases, but her average dipped a little.  She didn't have power, but she often turned the lineup over and did it well.  Defensively she had so many outfield assists it was insane.  That's where replacing her will be hard.  Also expecting an offensive upgrade overall.

The team is poised to make another run though (depending on how the new coaches mesh in and get the team going).  I feel like the batting outside of Katie Stewart dipped a bit last year; looking for improvement there for the team overall.

Thanks for the detailed breakdown HookemTexas . You made some good points, especially about how much production Texas is replacing and where the likely upgrades are. I think that's a pretty fair breakdown.

The biggest upgrade is obviously at 2B. Going from a good, experienced player like Goode to the reigning Player of the Year is about as clean of an upgrade as you'll find on paper.

I'm a little more cautious on catcher than you are. Swan absolutely showed up in the postseason and I like her upside, but replacing Atwood behind the plate is a huge ask. The offense may end up being comparable, but Atwood controlled games defensively in ways that don't always show up in the box score.

I also agree that LF should be an upgrade offensively. That's probably the easiest spot on the field to improve from last year's numbers.

RF is the one position I think fans may be undervaluing. People focus on batting average and power, but Maloney's speed, ability to pressure defenses, and especially her arm saved a lot of runs. Replacing those outfield assists won't be easy. The next player may put up bigger offensive numbers, but that doesn't automatically mean the overall value is higher.

As for pitching, Lincoln being a lefty definitely adds a different look and gives White more options. The question for me isn't whether the talent is there, it's whether she can be as reliable as Citlaly was when the season was on the line. By the end of the postseason, Citlaly was pitching some of her best softball of the year.

Overall, I agree the roster talent is probably better top-to-bottom than last season. The bigger question isn't whether Texas has enough talent to make another WCWS run. It's whether the lineup develops more consistency 1 through 9.

There were too many stretches last year where it felt like Stewart was carrying the offense. If a few hitters take a step forward, this team may have a higher ceiling than the one that just played for a national title.

Again, appreciate the insight. Always enjoy reading thoughtful softball posts like this.