(03-08-2020 05:41 PM)Owl 69/70/75 Wrote:  I'm not calling for Bragga's head, at least not at this point. I expect the recruiting to pick up substantially when the effects of the Rice Endowment kick in, and I think our recent recruiting drought was pretty much inevitable. But we need to start seeing improvement, at least in the basics. Our approach at the plate is horrible, and our pitchers don't throw strikes.

Sometimes pitchers don't throw strikes because they think their stuff is not good enough to get hitters out in the zone. But I don't know an explanation for taking so many third strikes and swinging at so many ball outside the zone.

I don’t know why you think the Rice Investment is going to dramatically affect baseball recruiting. The vast, vast majority of college baseball players—I’d guess well over 90%—come from families who will not qualify for the full ride (i.e. their families make over $65,000 a year). If we found players who met that criteria (and we’ve had a couple over the years) they were already getting a full ride or close to it anyways, it’s just been rebranded.

You may be able to find another player or two per year to get a half scholarship now through the new policy (65k-200k family income per year). So that may help things.

But a whole heap of talented kids, including a majority of the travel team players, will not qualify for any additional aid through the new changes. They are going to be getting the same deals as before. So while I think the Rice Investment will help some, I really doubt it’s going to be some great panacea.