Lady Vols Softball

#1,331
#1,331
Probably the most entertaining thing about first game was the usher trying to catch Morgan’s homerun and failing spectacularly.
 
#1,347
#1,347
Sherri Parker Lee Stadium has a problem with the gradient between the infield dirt and the outfield grass. Too often ground balls that hug the ground take wild, upward bounces when they hit the lip of the outfield grass. Years of dragging the infield without adding back adequate dirt and sand has created this situation. The Bellarmine second baseman even tripped because of this when she was trying to field a grounder. To rectify this situation the grounds crew would need to bring truckloads of dirt and sand into the infield make the playing surface equal to the height of the outfield grass. Problem is, if this dirt and sand is not compacted properly, the loose material would create uneven bounces and skids on ground balls in the infield. This is probably going to be a job for the offseason but it needs to be done to eliminate the problem. As is it is not a reliable surface and not up to major college standards.
 
#1,349
#1,349
kregman said:
My big concern with Karen picking a hitting coach is she loves the speed slapper game. Has she evolved with modern softball or is she stuck in the past? We seemed to have gone away from slapping if we go back you can pretty much close the program down in a few more years. Megan was a good step, having Marc help has really helped hitting, it is time for someone to retire no disrespect sooner rather later. That open slot needs to be able to recruit and and if it is a hitting coach teach modern hitting.
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There's always going to be a speed/slap component on every roster. It's not three spots in the lineup like it used to be, but it's always going to be there. Look at LSU this past weekend and Alabama this coming weekend. They have leadoff hitters that are slappers or have the ability to slap. They have another bat or two that can do it to generate a baserunner late in games as well.

So, no, Karen would not select someone that is going to try and have a lineup of five slappers, not that UT ever did that anyway. Even in the heyday of slap hitters, UT never had more than a couple stacked at the top. Ideally, your leadoff hitter or your #2 is someone like Aubrey Leach or Cailin Hannon or Kaitlin Parsons that has the ability to do both. To slap or bunt their way on (or move a runner while also having a chance to reach) when the situation dictates, but that can also swing away to the gaps. That's been the evolution, not a total replacement of slappers, but a move to players that are not ONLY slappers.
 
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#1,350
#1,350
DeerPark12 said:
There's always going to be a speed/slap component on every roster. It's not three spots in the lineup like it used to be, but it's always going to be there. Look at LSU this past weekend and Alabama this coming weekend. They have leadoff hitters that are slappers or have the ability to slap. They have another bat or two that can do it to generate a baserunner late in games as well.

So, no, Karen would not select someone that is going to try and have a lineup of five slappers, not that UT ever did that anyway. Even in the heyday of slap hitters, UT never had more than a couple stacked at the top. Ideally, your leadoff hitter or your #2 is someone like Aubrey Leach or Cailin Hannon or Kaitlin Parsons that has the ability to do both. To slap or bunt their way on (or move a runner while also having a chance to reach) when the situation dictates, but that can also swing away to the gaps. That's been the evolution, not a total replacement of slappers, but a move to players that are not ONLY slappers.
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Take Leach for example as great as she was and she was great failed many times with the runner at third with less than two outs slapping when she could have driven it into the outfield, she had plenty of power. Hannon was a waste as a slapper and now is one of our most potent bats once being turned loose. Amanda when she started they started primarily slapping with little results, good thing they let her go too. Watch Parsons bat she has a nice swing and if they let her stand in and swing too I believe she could do some damage. You can still bunt when the situation calls for it and drag bunt to get on. Defenses caught up to the slapping game. Yes, LSU has a great CF who slaps who got on few times, did she beat us? No, the ones who hit the wall and went over the walls beat us. There will always be be a place for speed and situational hitting. It takes a minimum of two things and generally three or more for a slapper to score. Someone with a good bat can do it with one swing. That is where the game is moving too if it is not already there.
 
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