You got a lot of different ideas in this one post...

Talent drop off since 2023
Quality players on elite teams
Talent drop in 2026 class and younger
Drop in total participation

Only the fourth point could be answered with data (at least HS stats). But what is so obvious about perceived talent drop offs and how could that be with so much more training and year round play? Did every future softball dad just mis-sire-fire for a few years?