By Will Vandervort.

By Will Vandervort

The days of high scoring games are over in college baseball, and Clemson head coach Jack Leggett says it’s time to change with the times.

With the BBCOR, or “Bat-Ball Coefficient of Restitution” standard now in its third year in college baseball, Clemson, like many teams around the game, have adjusted by recruiting players that are more known for their ability to put the ball in play and run, than for their raw power.

“We have some athletic kids in this class,” Leggett said to the media Monday. “So that’s good, plus we have some athletic kids coming back. We don’t have a whole lot of home runs coming back from last year’s team, and the bats have changed. The game has changed a little bit, so you have to change with the times.

“You have to be able to bunt, run, hit-and-run and run the bases very well.”

Clemson, which opens the season on Feb. 15 against William & Mary, has a few guys that can do that. Of course centerfielder Thomas Brittle is back. He led the Tigers last year with 15 steals on 18 attempts, as well as infielder Steve Wilkerson, who had 10 stolen bases on 12 attempts.

Clemson also added speed with the additions of Maleeke Gibson, Steven Duggar and Tyler Krieger.

“Losing Richie (Shaffer) and Phil Pohl definitely knocks us down a notch in power, but I like how our bats look this year,” Wilkerson said. “I think top-to-bottom throughout the order we will have guys that will be able to swing it and put balls in play and get on base.

“That will work just fine for us.”

It’s going to have to. Though no one has really been able to hit any home runs in the NCAA the last couple of years, Shaffer, Pohl, Brad Felder and Jason Stolz combined for 33 of Clemson’s 44 home runs in 2012. All four of them are gone, leaving Clemson with just three players who combined for only eight home runs last year.

“Obviously, it affect us to lose guys like Richie, Phil Pohl, Jason Stolz and those guys, but we have a lot of guys that are going to be able to play and step in,” said first baseman Jon McGibbon, who brings back five of the eight home runs. “We are not necessarily hitting for power, but we will be able to make contact with the ball and drive guys in.”

Clemson averaged 5.7 runs per game in 2012, and Leggett is hopeful, despite his team’s youth, it can increase that number this season.

“Jon McGibbon is a kid that has some power and Shane Kennedy, an incoming junior college kid, has a chance to help us in the middle of the lineup,” the Clemson coach said. “They are the two that probably have the most power, and Brittle is going to hit us one, two or three home runs, and Stevie Wilkerson is going to grab a couple here and there, but, for the most part, if we sit around and rely on that we are going to be in trouble.”

Instead, the Tigers are going to have to rely on 26 freshmen or sophomores on the team. Of those 26, six have a legitimate shot at being in the starting lineup on opening day.

“I can’t remember when we were this young,” Leggett said. “Usually, you come back and you go, ‘Okay this guy is going to play short, this guy will play first, third, left field, centerfield, catcher, and that whole thing. There is some new (people) on this field. There is no question about it.

“There are some question marks, and kids are really going to have to step and play for us.”