Kai Minor reveals why She turned down South Carolina and committed to Oklahoma Baseball….

Dominating a recruiting class is different from having a superb recruiting class, and that is what Patty Gasso and her Oklahoma Sooner program are doing this year.

The three-time defending Women’s College World Series champions are not just recruiting; they are reloading after obtaining verbal commitments from 2025 Extra Elite 100 Top 10-rated players, including infielder Lexi McDaniel, catcher/third baseman Kendall Wells, pitcher Sophia Bordi, and infielder Alyssa Parker.

“I visited Coach Gasso the weekend before, and a few days after returning home, I verbally committed to him.” How significant is Orange Lutheran (Orange, California) High’s star centerfield’s pickup?

It’s hard to compare players, certainly, but don’t be surprised if Kai is the next Jayda Coleman, the OU outfielder who is a three-time 1st Team All-American who has won a trio of National Championships and was the Big 12 Player of the Year in 2023.

The high school student plays for the OC Batbusters, one of the finest 18U club teams in the nation under Mike Stith’s leadership, and has won the last two Alliance National Championships. We will get to the statistics in a moment. Coach Stith said the following about his valued player:

According to the renowned club coach, Kai is a young athlete who is trying to improve in every way possible. She wants to be a professional and has the motivation to do so, thus “learn more, see more” is one of her motivating elements. With increased technology and opportunity, our sport is evolving, and as Kai develops and matures, I believe she will be at the forefront of these new prospects.

For the summer of 2023, Kai batted .426 with a .511 on-base percentage and had eight home runs on 63 hits in 148 official at-bats with 36 RBIs, 14 steals and a whopping 25 walks showing how much the opposing pitchers and managers respected her skills at the plate. Her hits and runs led the championship Batbuster team and, when it counted the most, the speedy lefty hitter elevated her game impressively.

Kai is also excited to be part of what is surely the No. 1 recruiting class of the 2025’s and she’s already friends with those who will be freshmen when they all step on campus together.

She says modestly, “I am really happy for us to move into the dorms together and play at the new Love’s Stadium. The other four 2025 commits are the best in class.” In addition to being current colleagues (with the Batbusters 18U squad), Sophia Bordi and I are great friends.