How To Pick The Perfect Bat: Length, Weight and The One With The Pretty Colors (Kidding, kind of)

Your bat is one of the most important tools in softball. Just how a car mechanic needs the perfect wrench, you need a perfectly sized bat to get the most out of your swing. It can turn a groundball into a double and a pop fly into a—dare we say—homerun. That might sound a bit dramatic if you’re not familiar with the ... More

How To Break In Your Softball Gear

Break it up, break it in, let me begin, If you came to win not breaking in your gear is a sin!   The House of Pain was on to something with their softball-inspired remix to Jump Around. Kidding, but really, although new equipment looks great, it won’t perform as well—which means you won’t perform as ... More

Commitment: How You Become Part of a Team

Commitment is defined as the state or quality of being dedicated to a cause, activity or an organization. People who are committed to a team truly believe it’s important that they show up, follow through and stick with it.   Commitment Starts With a Promise   Not only are you making a serious pledge ... More

Beat Yourself and Make No Excuses Along The Way

First of all, beating yourself up over failing to accomplish a goal achieves absolutely nothing. Yes, it’s good to call yourself out after failing to do something. Gaining an understanding of what caused you to fail, trying to correct it and moving on are all psychologically healthy steps one should take when such an ... More

The ROI of Softball and the Value of Team Sports

Youth softball can be expensive. There’s the cost of equipment, using indoor practice facilities, games, more equipment, tournaments, team uniforms, registration fees, pitching lessons, traveling, hitting lessons and more equipment (for good measure, of course).   We want you to know that your membership dues ... More

Mike Matheny: A Letter To The Parents

Mike Matheny knows baseball. Even if you’re a Cubs fan, you know Mike Matheny knows baseball. He started out playing little league, went on to compete in Big Ten ball, and finally wound up in the major leagues as a catcher. Before becoming the manager of the St. Louis Cardinals, Mike coached his son’s little league ... More

10 Tips For Overcoming Adversity in Competition

From having butterflies, to bad umpires and unfavorable weather conditions, adversity is everywhere in softball. Even the best, most-talented players face adversity. But it’s not about skill level; it’s about how you choose to react to it—how you choose to handle it.   In order to beat adversity, you must ... More

The 10 Mental Makings of Champions

More like the Mental Makings of the Blue Devils, am I right? All kidding aside, The 10 Mental Makings of Champions is a list that echoes everything we stand for as an organization. Some will say it’s just softball, but we teach life skills that help young people become great athletes and even better human beings. &n... More

10 Commandments of Softball

“Thou shall follow thy commandments below.” No, really—you should! The 10 Commandments of Softball not only build character, but lead to success both on and off the softball diamond. Please read over this post with your daughter.   Thou shall obey they coach They’re sweating, the clipboard first hit the ... More

What Can’t Be Taught: Hustle & Attitude

BREAKING NEWS: in life and in sport, you’re going to come across people more talented than you are. They’re going to be bigger, smarter and stronger than you are. They’re going to have more natural ability than you do. Unfortunately for them, that’s where it ends. Why? Because you have two things that can’t be ... More