Academy Notebook: RBI League preview; Dairy Max Baseball Factory recap; High school season wrap up

The RBI League Returns

This Saturday, May 8, the RBI League will kick off at the Texas Rangers Youth Academy with free-agent tryouts and evaluations.

The open workout will bring together newcomers and coaches looking to build out their teams. Players will be evaluated on their performance and drafted to various teams within the Rangers RBI League.

This Summer, Rangers Youth Academy teams will compete against one another, playing two games per week, with Opening Day falling on Monday, May 24.

The Rangers RBI League is divided into two divisions. Baseball and softball players will be assigned to either the junior or senior division based on age and skill level. The Youth Academy will be home to around 18 RBI baseball teams and 12 RBI softball teams with rosters chock-full of North Texas talent.

The 2021 RBI League will bring a new element of fun as the Texas Rangers Youth Academy is tentatively set to host the RBI Southwest Regional Tournament in early July. All-star teams throughout the region, including Houston, Austin, New Orleans and more, will compete to advance to the RBI World Series in Florida. The Academy will select 15 players for the 18U and 15U baseball all-star teams and 18U softball all-star team to compete against other RBI programs in the region.

In 2019, the Rangers RBI softball team made it to the championship game at the Southwest Regionals before losing to Houston, which went on to win the World Series. After waiting two years for the return of the Regional Tournament, these ladies are more than ready to get back on the softball diamond in pursuit of their first Southwest Regional Championship.

All summer long, the Youth Academy Notebook will keep you up to date on all things Rangers RBI.

Dairy Max Baseball & Softball Factory

Last Saturday, April 28, Texas Rangers Youth Academy athletes participated in the Dairy Max Baseball & Softball Factory showcase.

Top performing athletes were selected to attend the event because they all have the desire and potential to play at the collegiate level. The Dairy Max Baseball & Softball Factory showcase was specifically created to assist high school athletes in the college recruitment process.

Baseball Factory alumni include over 100,000 collegiate players and over 600 MLB players, including the Texas Rangers’ very own Taylor Hearn and Ronald Guzman.

Baseball and softball players from each graduating class between 2022-25, plus a handful of unsigned athletes from the class of 2021, participated in a day-long showcase style combine.

Athletes performed drills to measure various metrics like exit velocity while hitting, overhand velocity while throwing, broad and lateral jumps, and timed shuttle runs.

Professionals from the Dairy Max Baseball & Softball Factory will compile individualized metrics reports for each athlete invited to the event and produce a highlight reel showing their skills.

Athletes will receive their video and metrics to use as a tool during the college recruiting process. Now, in addition to their stats and natural talent, these athletes will have professionally produced materials to help them reach the next level.

High School Season Wrap Up

Another regular season of Dallas ISD baseball and softball is in the books, and the post-season is already underway. Pinkston, Sunset and Thomas Jefferson High Schools had another successful season calling the Youth Academy home.

Thomas Jefferson baseball closed out the regular season in eighth place in District 11-5A with an overall record of 4-15, and Thomas Jefferson softball finished in fifth place with a record of 6-14.

Pinkston baseball and softball both finished the District 12-4A regular season in second place with only eight total losses between them. Pinkston softball claimed the title of co-district champions along with North Dallas High School, home to several Youth Academy athletes.

In the first round of the playoffs, Pinkston softball faced Woodrow Wilson High School and fell to the Wildcats in a pair of close games. Pinkston baseball also came up short in the post-season, after a one-game playoff loss to Life Waxahachie.

Sunset baseball finished the District 12-5A season in third place with a 14-12 record, and Sunset softball finished with a 12-8 record, taking fourth place.

Sunset baseball will host a first-round playoff game against Woodrow Wilson on Oates Field today, Friday, May 7, at 7 p.m.

Good luck to all Texas Rangers Youth Academy athletes playing post-season baseball and softball for schools across the Dallas area!