After a Challenging Rookie Season, Sam Landry Steps Into 2026 with a New Mentality and a Strong Supporting Cast
Look for a Sam Landry Bounce Back
Sam Landry is coming off a rookie season that was not up to her standard as a pitcher and competitor. Every player goes through growing pains when they step into a new level, and there is nothing to hang your head about. You take it, learn from it, and go right back in with even more fire to make the next round better.
Landry went 1-5 with a 4.85 ERA in 2025. You saw glimpses of the Sam Landry that we all know from college, but the season was a tough one and difficult to overcome. When I asked her what she is focused on this offseason, Landry went more mental than mechanical.
“I think one thing I really had to adjust was my mentality, and that’s something I’m definitely still working on and hoping to have much better coming into this next season, to truly be the best I can be for my teammates and to bring a higher level of competition,” she said.
In the AUSL Expansion Draft, Cascade GM Jami Lobpries needed a pitcher, and she went straight to Landry with the second overall pick. Landry admits she really did not see it coming based off last season’s showing.
“I would definitely say it kind of caught me off guard being chosen pretty early on, just because I didn’t have the best season last year, just putting up those numbers. But I’m super blessed, and I think I know, and other people know, that I have more to offer than what I was able to show last season in the Pro League,” said Landry.
Everyone knows Landry has more in her than what was seen with the Volts last season, and she is ready to prove that. She is also genuinely excited for what is ahead with the Cascade.
Lobpries can pick them, and what jumps out the most is how quickly she stamped a strong pitching staff with Sam Landry, Carley Hoover, Payton Gottshall, and Kelly Maxwell. With four arms already locked in, it will be interesting to see whether she wants a fifth later on or shifts her focus to other areas. Either way, I really like where Cascade sits right now.
“So just being able to have that opportunity to showcase that, I’m super excited. I think our team’s gonna be really good, and just everybody they picked, I think they really thought out, like, building pitching staffs, building, in different areas, so I’m super excited for it,” Landry stated.
No matter how good you were in college, the pro level is a completely different world. You go from facing good players to facing elite players every day. You also have to grow up fast, learn quickly, and handle being thrown into the fire alongside your teammates. Landry spoke to that shift.
“I would say, like, when you’re in college, I feel like your coaches, very much, like, guide you in what you’re doing and, when you’re doing it.”
Sam Landry explained how that changes the moment you step into the pro space.
“I feel like when you step into the pro league, it’s a little bit more independent, and you’re relying on your teammates, and I think that’s an amazing thing about the pro leagues is, like, you really have to rely on your teammates to, kind of correct you.”
She spoke to how everyone is all in it together, and how they support each other to get better with egos put aside.
“It’s kind of a level of respect you have for each other to be able to listen to them, and to know that somebody doesn’t think they’re better than you, they’re just telling you what they saw.”
Look for Sam Landry to bounce back and write a different story in 2026. She is one of the league’s most popular players to many, and she will have the full attention of fans, young and old, along with the backing of a Cascade team that believes in her.
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