CLEMSON – The Clemson Insider takes a deep dive into Clemson’s ACC opponents for the 2025 college baseball season.

Newcomer California is run by head coach Mike Neu, who is in his eighth season with the program. Neu led the Bears to a 36-19 record in 2024, while going 17-13 in the old Pac-12.

The Tigers will head cross country to take on Cal for a three-game set on April 4-6.

STRENGTHS:

The Golden Bears are a very athletic and strong group of position players. Cal holds one of the better sets of middle infielders in shortstop PJ Moutzouridis and second baseman Jarred Advincula. The catcher and center field position are less proven going into the 2025 season but having that sort of experience in the middle of the diamond can be a jump starter for a program.

QUESTION MARKS

After losing three key components to the draft and the transfer portal some would say there is a lot to be desired going into the 2025 campaign. Cal is replacing 80 percent of their innings thrown from the 2024 season so there is a lot of innings up for grabs on the Golden Bears pitching staff. This lack of experience creates a huge question mark, but they do have some promising young arms to bring some life into this team.

TOP NEWCOMERS

A former star in the California baseball circuit returns to the west coast after a season at Texas A&M. Carl Schmidt is described as a fluid player who can generate a lot of thump in the bat while being able to hold down the hot corner positions. Another big piece for the Cal team is transfer David Shaw (Texas) who is a 6-foot-7 lefty. If he can throw strikes at a high level look for Shaw to be a big part of this team’s bullpen.

–photo courtesy of Cal Athletic Communications