Santa Rosa is coming off a 2023 campaign where the team was (32-12, 17-7), Co-Big 8 Conference Champions, and appeared in the NorCal Regional Finals. As the team moves forward into 2024, there is confidence within the program that the Bear Cubs are ready for another special season. The 2024 campaign kicks off with a 2-game series against Chabot College starting January 26th, with a 1 pm home opener on Saturday, January 27th. In addition to Chabot, Santa Rosa will also face West Valley, Shasta, Marin, Canada, San Mateo, Napa Valley, Cabrillo, and Fresno City in the nonconference portion of the schedule. In total, the Bear Cubs will play 40 regular season matchups and host 22 games at Cook Sypher Field.

For Santa Rosa to have a successful season and make a postseason run, the club will rely heavily on their veteran players to perform well. "Last year, we had a lot of Freshmen step up and make it a special season. A lot of those guys are returning, especially position player-wise. From a position player standpoint, we should be very solid" said Head Coach, Damon Neidlinger, who is in his 31st season with the Bear Cubs. Neidlinger noted Outfielder, Alex Leopard, who has signed to play for UC San Diego next fall, as a catalyst in "A group of young guys who have been here for three years who have worked hard and put a lot of effort in their development." Leopard, who hit over .300, had an OBS over .400, and drove in 34 runs last season wants to end his career at Santa Rosa on a high note. "I am looking forward to playing with my guys and hopefully go into the playoffs and win a State Championship," said Leopard. A strong core group of veteran position players should help the Bear Cubs out of the gate while the younger players get acclimated to college baseball.

Nearly all college programs in the country have questions about their pitching staff, and Santa Rosa is no different. "The biggest question mark for this team will be pitching. Everyone knows in baseball that you can be a solid team, but if you do not have pitching, you are not as solid as you need to be," said Neidlinger. While the pitching staff is not as established as the position players, Neidlinger has faith that many pitchers will contribute to team success. Neidlinger stated, "We are not going to ask our starters to go 6 or 7 innings, it is going to be a team approach. We need eight to ten guys to do well for 2 to 3 innings." Hekili Robello, who is coming off a 2023 season where he went 7-3, is expected to be the Thursday Starter Pitcher and an innings eater for Santa Rosa. Tuesday, Friday, and Saturday's rotation will be pieced together until pitchers step up and perform well. There is also optimism that strong defense from the likes of Aidan Lombardi and Keenan Morris will help build the confidence of the pitching staff. 

Unfortunately for the Bear Cubs, the team's solid core of position players has been with the injury bug. RS Sophomore, Jake McCoy, who led the Bear Cubs with 11 home runs and was named to the All-NorCal team, will be out of the lineup for the first three weeks of the season. In addition to McCoy, RS Freshman and projected leadoff hitter, Ayden Herrguth will miss an extended period with a quad injury. The coaching staff believes the team's competitive depth can pick up the slack while McCoy and Herrguth work toward recovery.

For most junior college programs, it can be difficult to balance win-loss records with player development, but Neidlinger has had the same philosophy since he himself was a player. "Winning and player development go hand-in-hand. The players believe in what we are doing. If the focus is on helping the guys be the best players they can be, you hope that the winning takes care of itself, some years it does, others it does not," said Neidlinger. The focus on helping the players reach their full potential has gotten many Bear Cubs Division 1 scholarships and professional contracts. In 2022, five former Bear Cubs were in MLB, and three players were drafted or signed professional contracts in 2023. Neidlinger believes that the success of his former players can motivate the 2024 squad, "A lot of the players now are still friends with the pro guys that came through the program. 95-98% of our pro players did not have scholarships out of high school. Our 2022 class had 6-7 guys get scholarships, and some of our older players saw them do it firsthand. The collegiate and professional success of our former players shows the development that can happen at SRJC." 

The Bear Cubs hope the fans will come out and support the team to give Santa Rosa a strong home-field advantage. "Come out and support us. It's a great facility and venue that we upgraded to have a stadium feel," said Neidlinger. Outifield, Jake McCoy also noted that the Bear Cubs feed off the energy of the crowd, and fans give the team a boost to play their best.