June 2, 2025 • 40 mins
In this episode, Krista, Ashley, and Laura dive into the momentum building behind women’s sports. From NIL expansion to MLB’s investment in the AUSL, the game is changing fast.
They unpack what this growth means for athletes, coaches, and the systems surrounding women’s sports. With professional models emerging and new resources taking shape, it’s time to rethink how we support the next generation of athletes.
This isn’t just a moment, it’s a movement.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:04):
All right, so we are back for another episode with the three
of us. We've had some fun chats with
athletes and probably should have hit record about 3 minutes
ago as we were raging about the obstruction rule.
So maybe we will start with that.
We are day two of the College World Series today as we record
this. So yesterday we got to watch 4
great games. So before we rage about the
(00:26):
obstruction rule, which we absolutely should, all of the
games were great. Like there was not one game that
was not close with two comeback wins really close.
All you know, the other two games were really close.
So it was a fun day of softball,but two of the games and then
what? This is not actually going to be
our main topic today, but we're just going to start with it.
Two of the games had obstructioncalls that were insane.
(00:49):
Like I always I think my determination.
We've talked about this before. We talked about the leaving
early role last year. My thought process is that if I
am a casual fan, so it's alreadyhard enough for us to watch the
obstruction rule when we understand the nuances of it.
If I am a fan, and I am now it'sthe College World Series.
I'm tuning in to, you know, softball for maybe the only time
(01:12):
of the year or, or one of the few times.
And what is happening on the screen is just you can explain
it. It seems insane.
Then it shouldn't be the rule. That is what I think.
Like it cannot be the rule because you lose viewers, which
maybe we shouldn't be determining things based off of
that, but at least that's to be part of the determination.
And it's just like an insane. So the two examples yesterday
(01:35):
for people, I mean, I assume most of our listeners watched
the cultural series, but it was in the Ole Miss game.
There was a rundown and they gotcalled for obstruction and the
Texas Tech runner was safe. And then in the Oregon UCLA game
in the 7th inning, there was a play at the plate where the
runner was out by 25 feet and they called obstruction and she
(01:58):
was safe. And so I think it's these
instances where it is impossibleto understand what should the
person have done. Like it's like, OK, to the
lender of the rule that is obstruction, but what are we
supposed to do in that? And I think absolutely we have
to reconsider that rule because it just doesn't make any sense.
(02:20):
Like I and and both we were talking about before when we hit
record, both of those situationsreally mattered in those games.
And so it's like you can't win or lose a game based off of a
play like that. It's just, yeah, it's hard to
understand. So the timing.
Of the Oregon UCLA 1 was really ridiculous, but I, I actually
think I'm more interested and I was like more enraged by the
(02:42):
obstruction call with Ole Miss and and Texas Tech because the
third baseman like it, it's as if you it doesn't take into
account the angle that the runner is coming in.
So in the Ole Miss Texas, I think that the Texas Tech runner
was coming in at an angle like toward the dugout in back into
(03:03):
third base. And she had from that angle had
a clear path to touch that. So the like basically the you
know, the Ole Miss third basemanwas giving her based on that
angle she was coming in from. And so if she if we're only like
talking about the like linear baseline, the the third baseman,
like, yeah, her foot was there, but if she had gone inside the
(03:25):
bag like toward third base, second base, excuse me, she no,
she'd be have to she'd be givingher the bag like.
There's no way she could reach honestly the same thing in the
UCLA 1. So it's like, OK, you're out by
25 feet, I have to tag you. So I'm supposed to like please,
I know you're. So bizarre.
(03:46):
Yeah, Please come here. I.
Just like it's the tool. I feel really bad for the
umpires because the umpires are like this.
Like they have to follow black and white literal.
There's no like interpretation at this point.
And like if it's literally what the textbook says, you have to
do it like it's not their. Liberty and the liberty yes
(04:07):
series the like engaging of the bag.
It's like we're starting to, I mean, good for people for trying
to mess with the rule, but it's,it's honestly what you're
describing on the rundown. It's like same thing if you
block the bag without the ball, right?
It's like my biggest question about obstruction, not allowing
them get to the bag without the ball.
(04:27):
I just don't get it. Like that seems simple.
My biggest question about obstruction is like they, and I
always think about this with like rules that are made-up For
these reasons of safety. Obstruction in my opinion, is
about safety. It's about the player and the
runner not potentially avoiding a unnecessary collision,
allowing the runner to have access to the bag safely in a
(04:49):
close play, fine. But in a rundown, in a rundown
where the fielder has to respondto literally the trajectory of
the runner, you cannot tell me that obstruction is a legitimate
rule that should be applied in that scenario.
I am for it with close plays at any base, the back home,
whatever from a safety standpoint.
So in the I did not see the Oregon UCLA one, but I'm
(05:11):
assuming by the amount of time between the catcher receiving
the ball and the runner making her way.
Well, who obstructions should beagainst in that case is the
runner. Like hey, in this scenario,
don't go barrel the. Catcher.
Yeah, there's got to be something.
Yeah. There's got to be something of
like, you can't make contact with the runner if you don't
(05:31):
have the ball. That's obstruction, right?
Like if I'm a catcher and I stand in front of the bag and
she goes and I what? Is the MLB roll because they
have obstruction? Like what is?
I don't know, but I'm asking thefans so this could be a
conversation. How to Google seriously just
because you ask? Them.
But I just think now I'm curious, does have this rule and
I don't I don't watch games. I have seen a couple instances
(05:54):
where people have been like, youknow, because I think some, any
obstruction safety type rule, they're going to be some
instances where you're like. I don't.
Yeah, what you just said Chris. So it says an act by a fielder
who is not in possession of the ball or in the process of
fielding it impedes the baserunners progress.
That's a lot more. Clean.
Yeah, that's a lot more clean inmy opinion.
(06:15):
In terms of like the descriptor of like not in possession of the
ball or in the process of fielding it.
I would say rundowns probably throw in the middle of that.
But like, if it's about safety, then a runner who is out by 25
feet, this isn't a safety issue anymore.
The safety. Like a like a technical too or
(06:35):
something where it's like they're also is like when you
what's the like flagrant rule inthe WNBA, It's like it's clear
that you're like, it wasn't a basketball move or something,
you know, so it's like or when it wasn't a soft move, it's
like. Yeah, I'm with you, LAR.
Like it's like it's about safety, so it's about contact.
Like I'm thinking like this is like the Buster Posey rule,
(06:56):
right? Of like this is really where it
stems from, right? Where it was basically like this
collision was really traumatic and he could he had nowhere to
go. That was the only thing he could
do was barrel through him because he didn't have access to
the bag. That's like the origin of it.
I watched that live, by the way.How's I think about that?
But anyway, I, yeah, but I tend to like collision.
(07:20):
Like not people getting hurt, ofcourse.
But I'm like, if I watch ice hockey, if everyone watches
this. Everyone should go to the clip
of I showed a few of our staff yesterday.
It's so good. I I actually put it in our like
slack thing. But they had the athlete, the
current athletes, some of the athletes in the World Series
respond to the 1982 World Series.
Yeah, first of all, they are. Barrel through each other.
(07:41):
Yeah, there's a play where just like.
And also they didn't wear helmets.
So in addition to the fact that.All right, question before our
viewers think that I'm like, youknow, barbaric, first of all,
like cheering on gladiators. No, I would I never liked seeing
people get hurt. Obviously I was traumatized when
I watched that live with Buster pose.
But but I will say every once ina while when I'm watching ice
hockey and they start fighting and referees just like circling
(08:04):
around them, I'm like, could youimagine?
Could you imagine like softball?And they're like, hey, you get
one punch each. Like I would sign up.
For to be fair, most of the hockey thing they just like.
Right, So I do like I like conflict.
I like like I feel like that is what sport is like.
If you get too dainty around sport, it's not sport.
But I obviously and totally for rules that are put in place to
(08:27):
not, you know, we know too much about concussion.
I get it. We're trying to eliminate these
like major collisions, but the idea of this is contact.
So the reason why the, excuse me, the UCLA Oregon one was
ridiculous is because timing. If you have the ball before
there's contact, there's no, there should be no.
Right. So it's like there can't.
Be A tag as long as you have theball before contact is made,
(08:50):
right? I just like that.
I don't understand. And then the one for the Ole
Miss one is, yes, her foot was in front in the baseline there,
but there was no contact. Like if it's I just like don't
get it if you have the ball. And then I think like it's it's
all supposed to be about like making contact with one another
when you don't have the ball. We've lost this like timing of
(09:11):
when you have the ball concept and then literally it's getting
called when there's no contact. It's wild and they've those
plays have. Mattered.
They've mattered. Yeah, those, I mean and.
It's hard to watch, right? Right.
Yeah, it's hard. To and also those are the ones
we're seeing on TV now, but you don't think there are games all
throughout the year where, you know, that shit has helped
people out of, you know, like big time wins or, you know, it's
(09:32):
just it's really crazy. Yeah, it's really crazy.
Hopefully, yeah. And I change it.
Everyone thinks it's crazy. Yeah, totally.
Hopefully they they change it. Like we're not debating anything
here, we're just raging as you said.
We're just like, don't mess up our game.
Yeah, it's stupid rules. Yeah.
Now on the positive, really exciting news yesterday is that
(09:53):
the MLB is investing in AUSL, which is so exciting for so many
reasons. Obviously any investment in the
pro league is great and and having financial backing is
something that we really need. But I was describing the the
reason this particular investment matters so much is in
(10:15):
order to get investment in the game, you have to prove
longevity. And so where women's sports have
struggled in the past and where supple, especially lately,
hasn't sort of like proven itself, I guess, or been able to
show is that when you don't trust the viability of the
league, you don't as a business want to make investment.
(10:36):
This is just like, I don't know,like is this league going to
stay around? And really the, the pro leagues
haven't been able to the the prosub leagues haven't been able to
show that viability. So when we're talking about
things like investing any kind of dollars in it, building
stadiums in places like, you know, putting infrastructure in
place to show that that's going to continue, there just hasn't
(10:59):
been that proof. And so when you have an entity
like MLB, which we know is goingto stay and is a big entity,
it's such a sign of like, OK, now next year when AUSL switches
to, you know, they're going now I'm going, I'm AUSL and I'm
going to Chicago is not a great example because we have the
stadium already, but I'm going to a city and I'm like, OK, we
want I, I am X person and I wantto start a team here as part of
(11:24):
the AUSL. And in order to do that, we need
to, you know, similar to the theSoccer League.
I want to have an investment. I want to have a stadium, I want
to have facilities. I want to do all of these
things. That was that's such a hard
conversation before, you know, because it's like, you know,
maybe this thing's going to stayor not.
So we had professional athletes playing on crappy high school
(11:47):
fields and all these things because there hasn't been that
investment. And now that conversation is
just taken instantly so much more serious.
And I think that is just so unbelievably exciting.
I just like, I can't like express how big of a deal it is
for our pro league. And, and I think it's just, it's
(12:07):
just so exciting. And I can't wait to see like
what it means over the next few years, I think.
I'm thinking of the like, the T-shirts everybody wears, like
everyone watches women's sports.You know, the conversation for
so long is like, there's no market.
There's no market. And I think this is such, it's
so glaring at this point like the market for college softball
(12:27):
is. Huge.
Huge and everyone knows that now.
I mean like the revenue speaks for itself, right?
So it's like everyone knows that.
And then we have spent time in the trenches with athletes who
GoPro in the US not, I'm not talking about that, over to
Japan in the US. And like they get paid nothing.
Their season's like 6 to 8 weekslong.
(12:47):
So they need a full time job because they're grown.
Up you're going in the directionI was going, absolutely.
Yeah, with bills and so if they're training, they have a 40
hour a week job. Like what?
So of course that products is shit, right?
Imagine. Or they have to go to Japan,
which is like. They go to Japan, that's
exactly. Right.
(13:07):
They go to Japan, they get over,you know, they train way too
much because the Japan League iscrazy.
Or also like I was explaining, like, you know, you have high
level pitchers who have been able to go to Japan and probably
not get overthrown because they were an entity there.
But also then the US just sit their best pictures to face
Japan. So it's like as we're prepping
(13:27):
for the Olympics, it's like we need or people to stay here.
And have a product to stay here to be good enough.
Yeah. And we've seen the, like,
logistics around, like these women are incredible athletes.
They have certainly not peaked in their career yet.
Like we all know the men are notpeaking at 22 years old.
(13:48):
So it's just been sad to not have a platform for them to keep
growing. And so I think it's just, it's
such a representation of this realization of like the reason
why people don't want to watch that is because it's thrown
together in such like shit circumstances.
If that's not, that's not real, that's not a real product.
And so like put together a real product and the market's already
(14:12):
there. This isn't like the market.
Well, you, you look at OK C and like as an example of talking
about this sort of like longevity, OK C got shown if you
host the World Series every year, this is a, this is a
lasting product. And so look at all the
investment they've like the townis about softball in the World
(14:33):
Series. There is an amazing stadium.
There are amazing facilities. They're like, it's a, it's such
a, you know, and that's stadium buses, right?
There's buses that run, there's vendors like it's this whole
product around it because as soon as they got told you get
this many years of it, you know,then they knew the market
existed and they had the longevity of it.
(14:53):
They they went in on investment and so that's what you need.
It's like this year, obviously AUS LS just traveling around.
There's no city base, but next year when they're trying to base
in a city, it's like, OK, how many stadiums are there in the
in the US right now there's Rosemont, there's OK C OK,
that's it. So now you have professional
(15:15):
softball athletes who are tryingto get based in the city.
And if we don't show that that product is going to stay, that
city won't invest, you know, andthose and owners won't invest
and, and all those things. And so now you have proof of
concept and you have investment that's going to last.
And so you can go to Dallas OR you know, whatever the cities
(15:36):
and say owners like, we want this and this is what it looks
like. And so all of a sudden that's
you look at, I'm comparing it tosoccer because I think it's like
Kansas City, KS City proved the concept.
They have their own stadium. They have their own training
facility. They aren't just like playing
out of the men's stadium. You have this sort of, you know,
(15:56):
proof that exists. I saw Chicago, they're moving to
Evanston. They're going to have their own
women's soccer, they're going tohave their own stuff.
And so that's how it happens. And it's going to take a minute,
like maybe next year, they're not going to be playing in a
newly built stadium. But you start to get that.
And now all of a sudden we're really talking about something.
And also the Olympics don't haveto be at OKC because there's
(16:18):
stadiums and other places in theUnited States.
So I think like that. It's just so it's really
exciting. I can't wait to see, like, what
it means for our game. And yeah, the announcers said it
like 42,000 times yesterday on the broadcast and I I was like,
because it's, it's just such a huge deal.
(16:38):
Yeah, it's a huge deal. Like someone like Nyjah.
OK, let's talk about Nyjah. Who is the most expensive arm in
the country, right? OK, as she freaking should be.
Jesus, yeah. For sure.
OK. And so think about what her
option we're telling her that intwo years, right?
Literally. I mean, that is, it's absurd,
(17:01):
right? So this idea of like that you
can get paid that much money in college now and then there's
nothing beyond that free to do something comfortable.
I mean, unless you go and literally live in Japan, which
is, I mean, that's kind of wherewe are now.
It's just it's so wild to think,especially with where, with NIL
(17:21):
and where the college game is going.
Like, I think all the time when we played and years after we
played, you know, it's always like, well, make sure you choose
the school for not softball. Because remember when softball's
over, like softballs over right?Like you have to.
And I always think, is that still the case for the majority
of athletes? Absolutely.
Let's be clear here. That's still the case.
(17:43):
Absolutely. But I often think like sometimes
on X I'll see people like sayingthings like that, like remember,
your career is gone. You have to wait.
And I'm like, but you know, not for everyone, right?
Like, like, don't you see now it's something different in the
same way than in baseball? Guess what?
In baseball, the overwhelming majority of guys are finished
(18:03):
after college and they don't play again.
They might try to sit in the minors for a while, but their
careers are over. But there is an Ave. now.
And so I have just thought like,Oh my gosh, this disconnect is
getting huge of us on having this opportunity at the
professional level. Like someone like Nyjah
$1,000,000 arm has nowhere to goafter she graduates, which just
(18:24):
gets dictated by her years of eligibility.
Right, it's just. So wild.
So yeah, I mean the idea of being able for like young
athletes to being able to like keep following these, you know,
these athletes throughout and that they can legitimately like
make a career, not just that like think about some of the the
athletes like where former like great players make their
(18:45):
careers. Now it's in like commentating,
right? You know, But like, that's kind
of it. Otherwise, they're just like
giving lessons wherever they live.
I mean, it's not they're not making a career, they're in
coaching. But I mean, they're not making a
career out of playing anymore. So it just like that doesn't
make any sense to shut that downwhen we're paying them so much
(19:06):
money during that time, so. It's freaking well, you talk
about it is yeah. And I think the like we talked
about before, but and IL is, youknow, it's complicated because
it's new. And so there's definitely like
there's a bunch of complicated things.
I think there are players who aren't the Najas who are like, I
(19:29):
want to get paid and they're like, I don't what you know,
there's like a level of like that's not really what NIL is.
So there's I definitely think there's still some like what is
all happening. But there is an element for
women's sports, which the NIL was is good.
You know, we can say all we wantabout like making everyone go in
the portal and stuff. But you have players now, female
(19:53):
athletes who for the first time they are, they come out at
whatever level they are and theyfreaking dominate and then they
get to go get paid. And then, you know, there's
like. There's that is showing that
there's value in that. You don't think Texas Tech as a
university of programs, I mean, you think that investment wasn't
worth it. They are on the biggest stage.
(20:14):
They are being talked about all the time.
Freaking Patrick Mahomes is posting about self all they're
talking to each other and Nyjah like did as promised.
Like, I mean, she's a freaking beast.
Like she came to this program and brought into the freaking
World Series has already won a game for them.
They're like it's there's such abenefit to it.
So I think we see some of these like mid major kids have such a
(20:35):
level of success or like just a power for that maybe isn't going
to make it to the World Series and their and their current
setup or whatever. And the you know, people are
like, Oh, she's probably not going to portal because she's
very loyal. And I'm like, what?
She's going to go in the portal because she's going to go get
paid somewhere and. That's what the shit people only
(20:57):
say to women. Right, totally.
It's like that's go get paid that there.
And now as you said, we're talking about in reality 5% of
the player, you know of the players that exist.
So this is not like every singleperson that has a successful
year is going to go get paid a bunch of money and should go in
the portal to get an IO. That's not what we're saying,
(21:19):
but there are examples of that. And I think like good, like we
need to start showing the value of these women and building that
program up and then, you know, they get to go do that in the
program, hopefully. Shouldn't definitely be
powerful, should split into its own.
I'm a huge advocate of that. I just like I don't.
(21:41):
I'm not saying there's no world for a mid major, but like it's
just not. It's just not.
I don't even think it's fair to be honest with you.
Like yes, we might have a team like make a run, but it's 1
liberty, the overwhelming majority.
It's just like it's not. And shouldn't NIL only be at the
Power 4 level then? So like, we can treat college
athletics like it was always meant to be at every other
(22:02):
level. And then there's this Power 4
world where it's like this bridge to professional softball,
you know, like to the pros. Where you can come start making.
Money and I think that is the conversation is that we're
starting to have this like semi pro model and what is that going
to look like and. Yeah, I think that's what it is.
I think that's why you saw like,like the Kentucky athletic
(22:24):
department went to an LLC. It's why you see the SEC
announcement coming in 202829. Like that's to me, that's the
direction that like they're going is that, you know, let's
take the amateurism concept out.That's what NIL introduced,
right? Was this opposition to this
amateurism concepts. And I, I think like that's the
direction we're going is where the, these power fours or
(22:45):
whoever's in that mix becomes this really some professional, I
don't know if it's detached fromeducation.
I, I've always talked about how we're very strange in our
country of attaching educationalachievement to sport.
No other country does that, right?
We don't have other countries that, that have college
scholarships. You play your sport and
sometimes that's all you do. And maybe you receive an
(23:06):
education, you're home schooled,your remote schooled, whatever,
because of your professional athletic ability or simply you
are in a sport that just exists outside of your school, outside
of your educational institution.We are weird in that regard.
So I'll be curious to see what happens is like, you know, OK,
let's pretend it's it's NCAA andeverybody else.
And so I think like what you're describing, I keep thinking of
(23:28):
what the NCAA commercial is. It's like because so many
athletes will GoPro and something else and like, that's
exactly right. That's what you're describing,
Ash, just like you're going to go pro and something else.
And so that makes a ton of sense.
If the NCAA's direction then is student athlete, if we are then
going to separate off into a different entity of this more
semi professional model, what isthe role then?
(23:48):
Where does education fit into that?
It's based at a college. Blah blah blah.
And I think my biggest, like my biggest hope for the
professional league and I, this is my personal opinion and I
think it's now or never. I think like if the professional
league right now cannot take themomentum of where college
softball is, the MLB investment,the Olympics being in our
country like it is now or never.And So what I hope is that what
(24:13):
we've seen in the investment in infrastructure, in the college
level, in the power force, the access to technology, the
strength and conditioning resources, mental health,
nutrition, sports medicine, thatthose things are not ignored as
part of the underpinning of the professional league.
Because what I have seen so often is we're going to ton,
we're going to pour a ton of investment into media and and
(24:36):
stadiums and logos and whatever.And then the fundamental thing
that makes that makes college softball so exciting to watch is
their freaking athleticism, right?
And the ability to express that in our sport.
And so, you know, I think that'sso much of why the professional
leagues have struggled is that that infrastructure of having
nutritional guidance and having a strength and conditioning
(24:57):
coach, access to just even your sports medicine team, someone
who can help you through injury.I mean, how many professional
athletes have we talked to that are like, well, you know, I had
this injury, but it was never addressed because it never.
Just have to be trying to deal with it on their own.
Right. Or I ignored it and that needed
to get paid. And that still is existing.
You know, the softball's a little behind some of the other
(25:19):
women's sports, professional leagues like a a basketball,
like soccer. But those problems exist in
those sports too, which is like if you watch the Angel City
documentary, like that was a huge thing of like these
facilities are we can't we can barely lift.
We like the facilities are not good.
We don't have enough training. You see so many like ACL
injuries in the pro Soccer League and trying to figure out
(25:42):
like cannot be managed. Whether I watched the like WNBA
also is not long enough yet, youknow, so they have options like
athletes unlimited and blanking on the name of it.
But there's that competitive, yeah, the other league sort of
like short term league and that league did 1V1 tournaments and
(26:02):
then they went into 3V3 and everyone was getting hurt
because that's like so intense. And so you had these, you know,
like big players going and sort of like beating up their bodies
to extend playing and to make money longer.
And I think, you know, that's the stuff we have to still keep
addressing in women's sports, which is we were showing that
(26:22):
there's a product, we're investing in it.
But now it's like you don't likeNolan Arenado from the Cardinals
isn't going to go play a fun, you know, with a wall league to
make money and risk his body because he you know the what he
does. I mean, honestly, for a long
(26:43):
time and this has shifted just because they're like, it's fun
and we like it and what it stands for.
But for a long time and MLB, they wouldn't do like they
wouldn't go play the World Cup or whatever it's called in in
baseball and they wouldn't do those things because of risk of
injury. And now I think some of the guys
are just choosing because of theexperience to do it.
But you still have to, in a lot of women's sports, do that.
(27:04):
And that, you know, eventually in the long term, we have to get
rid of that. Like they have to be able to
just make enough money to have the training resources to be at
the best versions of themselves provided by their team and their
organization. And then not have to do these,
not have to go to Japan, not have to, you know, go do those
(27:24):
things. And we're getting closer because
you see that soccer people are having to choose out less.
You actually see in soccer, someof the people are coming from
overseas to play in our league like that.
Those are all great signs, but we have to keep moving in that
direction in all women's sports.And so, Paul, it's going to be a
minute because right now we don't even have a league that's,
I mean, we have a league, but like a league that's.
(27:44):
It is wild. You just get used to what you
know and then there's times I'm like annoyed myself.
I had this specific moment when I was watching the the Eagles
after they won the Super Bowl this year.
I was watching their parade. And I had this moment of like,
Oh my gosh. Like, this is incredible.
I mean, just seeing, like, the streets filled with people,
people just, like, and, you know, I'm one of them.
Just feeling like this is the moment of my life I'll never
(28:05):
forget. And then I had this moment hit
me that it was like, isn't it weird we only have this for men?
Like someday is this going to belike, yeah.
Well, they have it for. Women's.
Basketball and soccer, they haveit for women's basketball and
soccer. People show up, I mean.
For sure. But this is new.
What I'm saying is new. We're in this Asian era where
we're building this and not all women's sports like have this.
(28:28):
So like, is this going to be a time where we're like tell our
kids or grandkids like there wasa time like, but like women
couldn't be in an army, you know?
Like there was a time when womenwere not allowed to.
You know it. Was like my son Teddy the other
day was like, can men play softball?
And I was like, yeah, actually there's like, you know, men's
fast pitch leagues or whatever. And he's like, I think I'm going
(28:49):
to try that. I'm like, cool.
I mean, I have no idea where youplaying men's passage, but yeah,
me neither. But yeah.
But it's like we've talked aboutthis before, but my, you know,
our kids are growing up watchingwomen's sports at a degree that
is so much higher, like when we graduated our senior year.
So now this long time actually, but like I remember that World
(29:15):
Series was like the first one that you could watch on TV and
it was just the World Series andit like it was like only at the
end you could watch those things.
And I remember it was like such a big deal.
We were all watching, you know, the athletes, but now to have
just the volume you can watch onTV and and that it's just all
the time. It's just like women's sports
(29:35):
are are there all the time and and obviously people want the
products. I mean, it's just like, yeah, we
just have to keep showing it. But yeah, the MLB investment is
I'm really excited. I like, I just I woke up and it
was like the first thing on my social media feed.
I'm like, Oh my God, this is. I think it's also, I mean, I
mentioned this to you yesterday,Crystal, like the coaching scene
(29:55):
is interesting to me too becauseand I guess, you know, former
players were going to have opportunities, but the the
pinnacle of coaching in softballright now is the college game,
right? And he's like big, you know,
powerful or institutions. So like, like who's going to
take these like manager jobs? Like it's going to be
interesting to see like it it can't just be former players.
(30:15):
I mean, of course former playerscan do it, but it can't just be
these like young, like I mean, these a manager role is like a
huge, you know, like, you know, when someone in their like
early, early to mid 30s gets a manager role in men's sports,
it's like a huge deal how young they are, you know, So I think
like this is going to be interesting.
Are there going to be once it builds, is it going to be a more
favorable job? Are people going to leave the
(30:37):
college game and coach at the professional level like, you
know what, what is that going tolook like?
I think that's interesting because the athlete world makes
more sense, right? You finish your eligibility, you
go up. But I think the coaching world
will be so interesting because we really are rooted in, you
know, that's been the top level of our game.
So that's what people know to dowhen you want to stay in for
(30:58):
like a long time. So what they'll be, it's got
it's going to shake things up. Right well we were talking one
of my good like college friends was like, what does this mean
for you guys and I was trying toexplain like when we work with
professional athletes now it like they can't pay us.
No, we. Have to do it for free for them
(31:20):
to try to help them. And we want to help them and we
want to train, but they don't have the resources to go.
It's been a charity for the mostpart from us and that's
intentional. It's easier for a teenager to
get access to the resources, thehighest level of training
resources than professional athletes.
And so this idea that hopefully we are building towards a
(31:43):
platform where athletes at the highest level of the game have
access to the resources in a variety of ways.
Laura, what you're saying is that their organizations provide
resources. So when it is season, whether
that's pre season and leading into season, that that
organization provides resources that they need to be at the
(32:05):
highest level, whether that's medical staff, training
facilities, you know, all of that analytics like it's it
provides them that. And then that, you know, pro
system pays them enough that when they are not in season and
they are in offseason, that theyare able to access resources to
(32:25):
maximize themselves. And that they and that there's a
variety of things that that means that they get access to
the marketing and media that they should to build their
brands and to to be out there. That they get access to the
training resources that they need.
That they have enough money and access to not just be like, I
coach this team and I go use their facilities.
You know, I coach so that a lot of times, you know, professional
(32:49):
athletes coach in college so that they get access to the
facilities so that they can, youknow, do that.
So it's that they don't need to do that.
That they have money to be able to pay for what they want
outside of it and that their organization inside of it is
long enough time of year that they are in it and gives them
access to that. And I think that that's the
(33:09):
biggest difference, like for, I don't know that impacts us
besides growth of the game is amazing.
And we want to support that and be able to use all these
resources we built for the collegiate game at the
professional levels and show these, you know, sort of adult
women in the professional game how they can maximize themselves
and do all the things that we have worked so hard for.
(33:31):
But the biggest change to me is just like these women who are
supposed to be the highest levelof our game, need the resources
in and out of the pro league to be able to maximize themselves
and, and build into themselves as an athlete full time.
And that that will be the biggest change.
When as it starts to happen, that will just be really
exciting. And, you know, hopefully that
(33:53):
just gives us more opportunitiesto help them do that, which I
think is really our goal. I also think there something I'm
personally excited about and I see this in the college game as
well. And I think this does impact us,
you know, down the road is our you know, our work right now.
Why you know, yes, is obviously with athletes and training them
directly, but it is also in our work with developing coaches and
(34:16):
helping them to learn analytics and to understand bio mechanics
and to to really grow themselvesalongside of their athletes.
And So what I am really excited about is like this rise of
player development roles in the college game that are non
coaching roles that are more, I'll say like rooted in the like
the exercise science, the human performance side of it.
(34:38):
And I am really digging seeing people take these roles that
have backgrounds in the body in,you know, in a, in a performance
context that we're going to needthose same people.
We're going to need analysts, we're going to need player
development people just like theMLB has.
And so that, you know, yes, physical equipment, but it's
also in the, you know, I hope wehave a hand in evolving these
(35:01):
other player development supportstaff through our education,
through the work that we do to help the professional leagues
and, and beyond to continue to grow that.
Because it, you know, I think like we've learned, you guys
have learned that like you can have the tech, but having the
people to be able to use it, runit, collect it, give it back to
(35:21):
the players, Like that requires a system and it requires
different types of people in that system.
And so I'm looking forward to toworking with anyone interested
in from a player development standpoint, you know, that wants
to either, you know, evolve at their college job, but maybe has
aspirations professionally in a role like that and to give them
(35:42):
access to that, you know, so notjust playing.
Like driveline. I mean, this is what driveline
does, right? Right.
They they've got a lot of guys and then they'll kick them out
to MLB jobs. These guys take MLB jobs.
So, you know, I hope someday people can come to us.
Like a lot of times we have coaches now they'll come to us
and go back to the college game.But that this is a real like you
spend time here and then you kick up to the pro league to be
(36:04):
able to like manage at that level.
I mean, they're well, right now we're talking.
About like, just add some examples.
It's like in the pro league, it's like they're looking for
machines to be able to practice.They're looking for, they're
paying people to be bullpen catchers, right?
And to pitch. They pitch to their pairs.
No, we are like backyard type of.
(36:25):
The level of access and so we, it's, it's time for those things
to grow and, and eventually it'slike, you know, you're going to
have like a front office, you'regoing to try to win, you're
going to use this data and the way that's going to grow and
trickle down to the conversations we're able to have
when you're talking about. You know I just had a thought.
Too bad we are not millionaires and don't come from like mega
(36:50):
big bucks. All of us are like literally as
blue color like. You know.
Middle, middle, middle class people as against from where we
come from. But if we had some megabucks and
we were the front office of someof one of these teams, we could
crush it. Yeah.
Well, it's like good like wouldn't we?
Yes, that was. 1000%. We would just build it out.
(37:11):
We're like, we're taking the Chicago such and such and.
We're going to. Crush the shit.
That'd be awesome. I think it's just getting like
we've talked in the past about, you know, coming all the way
down to like a pitch count conversation.
Is that the only way that you like the real way in baseball
that they've been able to lead those conversations?
And again, baseball's a sorry. All right.
(37:33):
This is a. Start again, baseball.
Is a mess too. So it's not like they've nailed
the pitch count and the overuse problems.
It's a mess. But the way that they can lead
those conversations and start todo it is MLB because MLB is
interested and has the money to say everyone's hurt like what's
(37:53):
our plan? And so this idea of the, the
self All Pro League being an entity that is able to say, Hey,
let's look at the youth thing because we want to make sure
people, you know, we have the opportunity to keep making this
league grow. Let's soccer's doing this.
I reference it, but the, the proleague and soccer and the, the
USA soccer is investing a lot ofmoney in a long term study into
(38:14):
ACL injuries because it's such an issue for them and, and youth
and at the, the pro level. And they're trying to understand
if they can do, you know, take some actions to really curb some
of that. And so you this idea of a viable
self all pro league is exciting and for so many reasons.
It's not just about those women's experience, but it's
about growth of the game. Even in the in the youth level
(38:38):
where you have something, you know, an entity at the top
that's saying we need to look into this.
We need to do these things that sits in a room with the alliance
and PGF and U triple SA and says, hey, you know, let's all
talk about what we're doing hereand we just haven't had that
centralized entity. And so the fact that we're
putting resources into a centralized entity and saying
(38:58):
this is it like this is, you know where we're going.
I think it's like it's about time.
You know, I think it's about time and it's it's going to be
really saying it's going to takea minute next year is not going
to be we've nailed. It like literally the shit we're
talking about is going to be like 5 to 10 years.
Yes, Yeah, we don't. Whatever the F word is when we
bleep. So that's right about that and
(39:20):
we'll be bleeping it. Basically, let the games begin.
Yeah, yeah. You got to get on the map to
get. It might be 5 years away, 10
years away, the type of world that we're envisioning, but you
got to start somewhere. So let the.
Games begin. All of this is going to lead to
that USA gold. Sorry.
To our friends in Canada and Great Britain, we love you and
(39:42):
we're going to train you. It's really hard to try to beat
USA. We're going to really change,
but at the end of the day, I don't know.
No eagles. Got some bias?
All right, well, until next time.
Exciting stuff. We really went on a journey
today, talked about obstruction,but into the good stuff and self
all continues to soar and we're obviously here for it.
(40:04):
So until next time.
All right, so we are back for another episode with the three
of us. We've had some fun chats with
athletes and probably should have hit record about 3 minutes
ago as we were raging about the obstruction rule.
So maybe we will start with that.
We are day two of the College World Series today as we record
this. So yesterday we got to watch 4
great games. So before we rage about the
(00:26):
obstruction rule, which we absolutely should, all of the
games were great. Like there was not one game that
was not close with two comeback wins really close.
All you know, the other two games were really close.
So it was a fun day of softball,but two of the games and then
what? This is not actually going to be
our main topic today, but we're just going to start with it.
Two of the games had obstructioncalls that were insane.
(00:49):
Like I always I think my determination.
We've talked about this before. We talked about the leaving
early role last year. My thought process is that if I
am a casual fan, so it's alreadyhard enough for us to watch the
obstruction rule when we understand the nuances of it.
If I am a fan, and I am now it'sthe College World Series.
I'm tuning in to, you know, softball for maybe the only time
(01:12):
of the year or, or one of the few times.
And what is happening on the screen is just you can explain
it. It seems insane.
Then it shouldn't be the rule. That is what I think.
Like it cannot be the rule because you lose viewers, which
maybe we shouldn't be determining things based off of
that, but at least that's to be part of the determination.
And it's just like an insane. So the two examples yesterday
(01:35):
for people, I mean, I assume most of our listeners watched
the cultural series, but it was in the Ole Miss game.
There was a rundown and they gotcalled for obstruction and the
Texas Tech runner was safe. And then in the Oregon UCLA game
in the 7th inning, there was a play at the plate where the
runner was out by 25 feet and they called obstruction and she
(01:58):
was safe. And so I think it's these
instances where it is impossibleto understand what should the
person have done. Like it's like, OK, to the
lender of the rule that is obstruction, but what are we
supposed to do in that? And I think absolutely we have
to reconsider that rule because it just doesn't make any sense.
(02:20):
Like I and and both we were talking about before when we hit
record, both of those situationsreally mattered in those games.
And so it's like you can't win or lose a game based off of a
play like that. It's just, yeah, it's hard to
understand. So the timing.
Of the Oregon UCLA 1 was really ridiculous, but I, I actually
think I'm more interested and I was like more enraged by the
(02:42):
obstruction call with Ole Miss and and Texas Tech because the
third baseman like it, it's as if you it doesn't take into
account the angle that the runner is coming in.
So in the Ole Miss Texas, I think that the Texas Tech runner
was coming in at an angle like toward the dugout in back into
(03:03):
third base. And she had from that angle had
a clear path to touch that. So the like basically the you
know, the Ole Miss third basemanwas giving her based on that
angle she was coming in from. And so if she if we're only like
talking about the like linear baseline, the the third baseman,
like, yeah, her foot was there, but if she had gone inside the
(03:25):
bag like toward third base, second base, excuse me, she no,
she'd be have to she'd be givingher the bag like.
There's no way she could reach honestly the same thing in the
UCLA 1. So it's like, OK, you're out by
25 feet, I have to tag you. So I'm supposed to like please,
I know you're. So bizarre.
(03:46):
Yeah, Please come here. I.
Just like it's the tool. I feel really bad for the
umpires because the umpires are like this.
Like they have to follow black and white literal.
There's no like interpretation at this point.
And like if it's literally what the textbook says, you have to
do it like it's not their. Liberty and the liberty yes
(04:07):
series the like engaging of the bag.
It's like we're starting to, I mean, good for people for trying
to mess with the rule, but it's,it's honestly what you're
describing on the rundown. It's like same thing if you
block the bag without the ball, right?
It's like my biggest question about obstruction, not allowing
them get to the bag without the ball.
(04:27):
I just don't get it. Like that seems simple.
My biggest question about obstruction is like they, and I
always think about this with like rules that are made-up For
these reasons of safety. Obstruction in my opinion, is
about safety. It's about the player and the
runner not potentially avoiding a unnecessary collision,
allowing the runner to have access to the bag safely in a
(04:49):
close play, fine. But in a rundown, in a rundown
where the fielder has to respondto literally the trajectory of
the runner, you cannot tell me that obstruction is a legitimate
rule that should be applied in that scenario.
I am for it with close plays at any base, the back home,
whatever from a safety standpoint.
So in the I did not see the Oregon UCLA one, but I'm
(05:11):
assuming by the amount of time between the catcher receiving
the ball and the runner making her way.
Well, who obstructions should beagainst in that case is the
runner. Like hey, in this scenario,
don't go barrel the. Catcher.
Yeah, there's got to be something.
Yeah. There's got to be something of
like, you can't make contact with the runner if you don't
(05:31):
have the ball. That's obstruction, right?
Like if I'm a catcher and I stand in front of the bag and
she goes and I what? Is the MLB roll because they
have obstruction? Like what is?
I don't know, but I'm asking thefans so this could be a
conversation. How to Google seriously just
because you ask? Them.
But I just think now I'm curious, does have this rule and
I don't I don't watch games. I have seen a couple instances
(05:54):
where people have been like, youknow, because I think some, any
obstruction safety type rule, they're going to be some
instances where you're like. I don't.
Yeah, what you just said Chris. So it says an act by a fielder
who is not in possession of the ball or in the process of
fielding it impedes the baserunners progress.
That's a lot more. Clean.
Yeah, that's a lot more clean inmy opinion.
(06:15):
In terms of like the descriptor of like not in possession of the
ball or in the process of fielding it.
I would say rundowns probably throw in the middle of that.
But like, if it's about safety, then a runner who is out by 25
feet, this isn't a safety issue anymore.
The safety. Like a like a technical too or
(06:35):
something where it's like they're also is like when you
what's the like flagrant rule inthe WNBA, It's like it's clear
that you're like, it wasn't a basketball move or something,
you know, so it's like or when it wasn't a soft move, it's
like. Yeah, I'm with you, LAR.
Like it's like it's about safety, so it's about contact.
Like I'm thinking like this is like the Buster Posey rule,
(06:56):
right? Of like this is really where it
stems from, right? Where it was basically like this
collision was really traumatic and he could he had nowhere to
go. That was the only thing he could
do was barrel through him because he didn't have access to
the bag. That's like the origin of it.
I watched that live, by the way.How's I think about that?
But anyway, I, yeah, but I tend to like collision.
(07:20):
Like not people getting hurt, ofcourse.
But I'm like, if I watch ice hockey, if everyone watches
this. Everyone should go to the clip
of I showed a few of our staff yesterday.
It's so good. I I actually put it in our like
slack thing. But they had the athlete, the
current athletes, some of the athletes in the World Series
respond to the 1982 World Series.
Yeah, first of all, they are. Barrel through each other.
(07:41):
Yeah, there's a play where just like.
And also they didn't wear helmets.
So in addition to the fact that.All right, question before our
viewers think that I'm like, youknow, barbaric, first of all,
like cheering on gladiators. No, I would I never liked seeing
people get hurt. Obviously I was traumatized when
I watched that live with Buster pose.
But but I will say every once ina while when I'm watching ice
hockey and they start fighting and referees just like circling
(08:04):
around them, I'm like, could youimagine?
Could you imagine like softball?And they're like, hey, you get
one punch each. Like I would sign up.
For to be fair, most of the hockey thing they just like.
Right, So I do like I like conflict.
I like like I feel like that is what sport is like.
If you get too dainty around sport, it's not sport.
But I obviously and totally for rules that are put in place to
(08:27):
not, you know, we know too much about concussion.
I get it. We're trying to eliminate these
like major collisions, but the idea of this is contact.
So the reason why the, excuse me, the UCLA Oregon one was
ridiculous is because timing. If you have the ball before
there's contact, there's no, there should be no.
Right. So it's like there can't.
Be A tag as long as you have theball before contact is made,
(08:50):
right? I just like that.
I don't understand. And then the one for the Ole
Miss one is, yes, her foot was in front in the baseline there,
but there was no contact. Like if it's I just like don't
get it if you have the ball. And then I think like it's it's
all supposed to be about like making contact with one another
when you don't have the ball. We've lost this like timing of
(09:11):
when you have the ball concept and then literally it's getting
called when there's no contact. It's wild and they've those
plays have. Mattered.
They've mattered. Yeah, those, I mean and.
It's hard to watch, right? Right.
Yeah, it's hard. To and also those are the ones
we're seeing on TV now, but you don't think there are games all
throughout the year where, you know, that shit has helped
people out of, you know, like big time wins or, you know, it's
(09:32):
just it's really crazy. Yeah, it's really crazy.
Hopefully, yeah. And I change it.
Everyone thinks it's crazy. Yeah, totally.
Hopefully they they change it. Like we're not debating anything
here, we're just raging as you said.
We're just like, don't mess up our game.
Yeah, it's stupid rules. Yeah.
Now on the positive, really exciting news yesterday is that
(09:53):
the MLB is investing in AUSL, which is so exciting for so many
reasons. Obviously any investment in the
pro league is great and and having financial backing is
something that we really need. But I was describing the the
reason this particular investment matters so much is in
(10:15):
order to get investment in the game, you have to prove
longevity. And so where women's sports have
struggled in the past and where supple, especially lately,
hasn't sort of like proven itself, I guess, or been able to
show is that when you don't trust the viability of the
league, you don't as a business want to make investment.
(10:36):
This is just like, I don't know,like is this league going to
stay around? And really the, the pro leagues
haven't been able to the the prosub leagues haven't been able to
show that viability. So when we're talking about
things like investing any kind of dollars in it, building
stadiums in places like, you know, putting infrastructure in
place to show that that's going to continue, there just hasn't
(10:59):
been that proof. And so when you have an entity
like MLB, which we know is goingto stay and is a big entity,
it's such a sign of like, OK, now next year when AUSL switches
to, you know, they're going now I'm going, I'm AUSL and I'm
going to Chicago is not a great example because we have the
stadium already, but I'm going to a city and I'm like, OK, we
want I, I am X person and I wantto start a team here as part of
(11:24):
the AUSL. And in order to do that, we need
to, you know, similar to the theSoccer League.
I want to have an investment. I want to have a stadium, I want
to have facilities. I want to do all of these
things. That was that's such a hard
conversation before, you know, because it's like, you know,
maybe this thing's going to stayor not.
So we had professional athletes playing on crappy high school
(11:47):
fields and all these things because there hasn't been that
investment. And now that conversation is
just taken instantly so much more serious.
And I think that is just so unbelievably exciting.
I just like, I can't like express how big of a deal it is
for our pro league. And, and I think it's just, it's
(12:07):
just so exciting. And I can't wait to see like
what it means over the next few years, I think.
I'm thinking of the like, the T-shirts everybody wears, like
everyone watches women's sports.You know, the conversation for
so long is like, there's no market.
There's no market. And I think this is such, it's
so glaring at this point like the market for college softball
(12:27):
is. Huge.
Huge and everyone knows that now.
I mean like the revenue speaks for itself, right?
So it's like everyone knows that.
And then we have spent time in the trenches with athletes who
GoPro in the US not, I'm not talking about that, over to
Japan in the US. And like they get paid nothing.
Their season's like 6 to 8 weekslong.
(12:47):
So they need a full time job because they're grown.
Up you're going in the directionI was going, absolutely.
Yeah, with bills and so if they're training, they have a 40
hour a week job. Like what?
So of course that products is shit, right?
Imagine. Or they have to go to Japan,
which is like. They go to Japan, that's
exactly. Right.
(13:07):
They go to Japan, they get over,you know, they train way too
much because the Japan League iscrazy.
Or also like I was explaining, like, you know, you have high
level pitchers who have been able to go to Japan and probably
not get overthrown because they were an entity there.
But also then the US just sit their best pictures to face
Japan. So it's like as we're prepping
(13:27):
for the Olympics, it's like we need or people to stay here.
And have a product to stay here to be good enough.
Yeah. And we've seen the, like,
logistics around, like these women are incredible athletes.
They have certainly not peaked in their career yet.
Like we all know the men are notpeaking at 22 years old.
(13:48):
So it's just been sad to not have a platform for them to keep
growing. And so I think it's just, it's
such a representation of this realization of like the reason
why people don't want to watch that is because it's thrown
together in such like shit circumstances.
If that's not, that's not real, that's not a real product.
And so like put together a real product and the market's already
(14:12):
there. This isn't like the market.
Well, you, you look at OK C and like as an example of talking
about this sort of like longevity, OK C got shown if you
host the World Series every year, this is a, this is a
lasting product. And so look at all the
investment they've like the townis about softball in the World
(14:33):
Series. There is an amazing stadium.
There are amazing facilities. They're like, it's a, it's such
a, you know, and that's stadium buses, right?
There's buses that run, there's vendors like it's this whole
product around it because as soon as they got told you get
this many years of it, you know,then they knew the market
existed and they had the longevity of it.
(14:53):
They they went in on investment and so that's what you need.
It's like this year, obviously AUS LS just traveling around.
There's no city base, but next year when they're trying to base
in a city, it's like, OK, how many stadiums are there in the
in the US right now there's Rosemont, there's OK C OK,
that's it. So now you have professional
(15:15):
softball athletes who are tryingto get based in the city.
And if we don't show that that product is going to stay, that
city won't invest, you know, andthose and owners won't invest
and, and all those things. And so now you have proof of
concept and you have investment that's going to last.
And so you can go to Dallas OR you know, whatever the cities
(15:36):
and say owners like, we want this and this is what it looks
like. And so all of a sudden that's
you look at, I'm comparing it tosoccer because I think it's like
Kansas City, KS City proved the concept.
They have their own stadium. They have their own training
facility. They aren't just like playing
out of the men's stadium. You have this sort of, you know,
(15:56):
proof that exists. I saw Chicago, they're moving to
Evanston. They're going to have their own
women's soccer, they're going tohave their own stuff.
And so that's how it happens. And it's going to take a minute,
like maybe next year, they're not going to be playing in a
newly built stadium. But you start to get that.
And now all of a sudden we're really talking about something.
And also the Olympics don't haveto be at OKC because there's
(16:18):
stadiums and other places in theUnited States.
So I think like that. It's just so it's really
exciting. I can't wait to see, like, what
it means for our game. And yeah, the announcers said it
like 42,000 times yesterday on the broadcast and I I was like,
because it's, it's just such a huge deal.
(16:38):
Yeah, it's a huge deal. Like someone like Nyjah.
OK, let's talk about Nyjah. Who is the most expensive arm in
the country, right? OK, as she freaking should be.
Jesus, yeah. For sure.
OK. And so think about what her
option we're telling her that intwo years, right?
Literally. I mean, that is, it's absurd,
(17:01):
right? So this idea of like that you
can get paid that much money in college now and then there's
nothing beyond that free to do something comfortable.
I mean, unless you go and literally live in Japan, which
is, I mean, that's kind of wherewe are now.
It's just it's so wild to think,especially with where, with NIL
(17:21):
and where the college game is going.
Like, I think all the time when we played and years after we
played, you know, it's always like, well, make sure you choose
the school for not softball. Because remember when softball's
over, like softballs over right?Like you have to.
And I always think, is that still the case for the majority
of athletes? Absolutely.
Let's be clear here. That's still the case.
(17:43):
Absolutely. But I often think like sometimes
on X I'll see people like sayingthings like that, like remember,
your career is gone. You have to wait.
And I'm like, but you know, not for everyone, right?
Like, like, don't you see now it's something different in the
same way than in baseball? Guess what?
In baseball, the overwhelming majority of guys are finished
(18:03):
after college and they don't play again.
They might try to sit in the minors for a while, but their
careers are over. But there is an Ave. now.
And so I have just thought like,Oh my gosh, this disconnect is
getting huge of us on having this opportunity at the
professional level. Like someone like Nyjah
$1,000,000 arm has nowhere to goafter she graduates, which just
(18:24):
gets dictated by her years of eligibility.
Right, it's just. So wild.
So yeah, I mean the idea of being able for like young
athletes to being able to like keep following these, you know,
these athletes throughout and that they can legitimately like
make a career, not just that like think about some of the the
athletes like where former like great players make their
(18:45):
careers. Now it's in like commentating,
right? You know, But like, that's kind
of it. Otherwise, they're just like
giving lessons wherever they live.
I mean, it's not they're not making a career, they're in
coaching. But I mean, they're not making a
career out of playing anymore. So it just like that doesn't
make any sense to shut that downwhen we're paying them so much
(19:06):
money during that time, so. It's freaking well, you talk
about it is yeah. And I think the like we talked
about before, but and IL is, youknow, it's complicated because
it's new. And so there's definitely like
there's a bunch of complicated things.
I think there are players who aren't the Najas who are like, I
(19:29):
want to get paid and they're like, I don't what you know,
there's like a level of like that's not really what NIL is.
So there's I definitely think there's still some like what is
all happening. But there is an element for
women's sports, which the NIL was is good.
You know, we can say all we wantabout like making everyone go in
the portal and stuff. But you have players now, female
(19:53):
athletes who for the first time they are, they come out at
whatever level they are and theyfreaking dominate and then they
get to go get paid. And then, you know, there's
like. There's that is showing that
there's value in that. You don't think Texas Tech as a
university of programs, I mean, you think that investment wasn't
worth it. They are on the biggest stage.
(20:14):
They are being talked about all the time.
Freaking Patrick Mahomes is posting about self all they're
talking to each other and Nyjah like did as promised.
Like, I mean, she's a freaking beast.
Like she came to this program and brought into the freaking
World Series has already won a game for them.
They're like it's there's such abenefit to it.
So I think we see some of these like mid major kids have such a
(20:35):
level of success or like just a power for that maybe isn't going
to make it to the World Series and their and their current
setup or whatever. And the you know, people are
like, Oh, she's probably not going to portal because she's
very loyal. And I'm like, what?
She's going to go in the portal because she's going to go get
paid somewhere and. That's what the shit people only
(20:57):
say to women. Right, totally.
It's like that's go get paid that there.
And now as you said, we're talking about in reality 5% of
the player, you know of the players that exist.
So this is not like every singleperson that has a successful
year is going to go get paid a bunch of money and should go in
the portal to get an IO. That's not what we're saying,
(21:19):
but there are examples of that. And I think like good, like we
need to start showing the value of these women and building that
program up and then, you know, they get to go do that in the
program, hopefully. Shouldn't definitely be
powerful, should split into its own.
I'm a huge advocate of that. I just like I don't.
(21:41):
I'm not saying there's no world for a mid major, but like it's
just not. It's just not.
I don't even think it's fair to be honest with you.
Like yes, we might have a team like make a run, but it's 1
liberty, the overwhelming majority.
It's just like it's not. And shouldn't NIL only be at the
Power 4 level then? So like, we can treat college
athletics like it was always meant to be at every other
(22:02):
level. And then there's this Power 4
world where it's like this bridge to professional softball,
you know, like to the pros. Where you can come start making.
Money and I think that is the conversation is that we're
starting to have this like semi pro model and what is that going
to look like and. Yeah, I think that's what it is.
I think that's why you saw like,like the Kentucky athletic
(22:24):
department went to an LLC. It's why you see the SEC
announcement coming in 202829. Like that's to me, that's the
direction that like they're going is that, you know, let's
take the amateurism concept out.That's what NIL introduced,
right? Was this opposition to this
amateurism concepts. And I, I think like that's the
direction we're going is where the, these power fours or
(22:45):
whoever's in that mix becomes this really some professional, I
don't know if it's detached fromeducation.
I, I've always talked about how we're very strange in our
country of attaching educationalachievement to sport.
No other country does that, right?
We don't have other countries that, that have college
scholarships. You play your sport and
sometimes that's all you do. And maybe you receive an
(23:06):
education, you're home schooled,your remote schooled, whatever,
because of your professional athletic ability or simply you
are in a sport that just exists outside of your school, outside
of your educational institution.We are weird in that regard.
So I'll be curious to see what happens is like, you know, OK,
let's pretend it's it's NCAA andeverybody else.
And so I think like what you're describing, I keep thinking of
(23:28):
what the NCAA commercial is. It's like because so many
athletes will GoPro and something else and like, that's
exactly right. That's what you're describing,
Ash, just like you're going to go pro and something else.
And so that makes a ton of sense.
If the NCAA's direction then is student athlete, if we are then
going to separate off into a different entity of this more
semi professional model, what isthe role then?
(23:48):
Where does education fit into that?
It's based at a college. Blah blah blah.
And I think my biggest, like my biggest hope for the
professional league and I, this is my personal opinion and I
think it's now or never. I think like if the professional
league right now cannot take themomentum of where college
softball is, the MLB investment,the Olympics being in our
country like it is now or never.And So what I hope is that what
(24:13):
we've seen in the investment in infrastructure, in the college
level, in the power force, the access to technology, the
strength and conditioning resources, mental health,
nutrition, sports medicine, thatthose things are not ignored as
part of the underpinning of the professional league.
Because what I have seen so often is we're going to ton,
we're going to pour a ton of investment into media and and
(24:36):
stadiums and logos and whatever.And then the fundamental thing
that makes that makes college softball so exciting to watch is
their freaking athleticism, right?
And the ability to express that in our sport.
And so, you know, I think that'sso much of why the professional
leagues have struggled is that that infrastructure of having
nutritional guidance and having a strength and conditioning
(24:57):
coach, access to just even your sports medicine team, someone
who can help you through injury.I mean, how many professional
athletes have we talked to that are like, well, you know, I had
this injury, but it was never addressed because it never.
Just have to be trying to deal with it on their own.
Right. Or I ignored it and that needed
to get paid. And that still is existing.
You know, the softball's a little behind some of the other
(25:19):
women's sports, professional leagues like a a basketball,
like soccer. But those problems exist in
those sports too, which is like if you watch the Angel City
documentary, like that was a huge thing of like these
facilities are we can't we can barely lift.
We like the facilities are not good.
We don't have enough training. You see so many like ACL
injuries in the pro Soccer League and trying to figure out
(25:42):
like cannot be managed. Whether I watched the like WNBA
also is not long enough yet, youknow, so they have options like
athletes unlimited and blanking on the name of it.
But there's that competitive, yeah, the other league sort of
like short term league and that league did 1V1 tournaments and
(26:02):
then they went into 3V3 and everyone was getting hurt
because that's like so intense. And so you had these, you know,
like big players going and sort of like beating up their bodies
to extend playing and to make money longer.
And I think, you know, that's the stuff we have to still keep
addressing in women's sports, which is we were showing that
(26:22):
there's a product, we're investing in it.
But now it's like you don't likeNolan Arenado from the Cardinals
isn't going to go play a fun, you know, with a wall league to
make money and risk his body because he you know the what he
does. I mean, honestly, for a long
(26:43):
time and this has shifted just because they're like, it's fun
and we like it and what it stands for.
But for a long time and MLB, they wouldn't do like they
wouldn't go play the World Cup or whatever it's called in in
baseball and they wouldn't do those things because of risk of
injury. And now I think some of the guys
are just choosing because of theexperience to do it.
But you still have to, in a lot of women's sports, do that.
(27:04):
And that, you know, eventually in the long term, we have to get
rid of that. Like they have to be able to
just make enough money to have the training resources to be at
the best versions of themselves provided by their team and their
organization. And then not have to do these,
not have to go to Japan, not have to, you know, go do those
(27:24):
things. And we're getting closer because
you see that soccer people are having to choose out less.
You actually see in soccer, someof the people are coming from
overseas to play in our league like that.
Those are all great signs, but we have to keep moving in that
direction in all women's sports.And so, Paul, it's going to be a
minute because right now we don't even have a league that's,
I mean, we have a league, but like a league that's.
(27:44):
It is wild. You just get used to what you
know and then there's times I'm like annoyed myself.
I had this specific moment when I was watching the the Eagles
after they won the Super Bowl this year.
I was watching their parade. And I had this moment of like,
Oh my gosh. Like, this is incredible.
I mean, just seeing, like, the streets filled with people,
people just, like, and, you know, I'm one of them.
Just feeling like this is the moment of my life I'll never
(28:05):
forget. And then I had this moment hit
me that it was like, isn't it weird we only have this for men?
Like someday is this going to belike, yeah.
Well, they have it for. Women's.
Basketball and soccer, they haveit for women's basketball and
soccer. People show up, I mean.
For sure. But this is new.
What I'm saying is new. We're in this Asian era where
we're building this and not all women's sports like have this.
(28:28):
So like, is this going to be a time where we're like tell our
kids or grandkids like there wasa time like, but like women
couldn't be in an army, you know?
Like there was a time when womenwere not allowed to.
You know it. Was like my son Teddy the other
day was like, can men play softball?
And I was like, yeah, actually there's like, you know, men's
fast pitch leagues or whatever. And he's like, I think I'm going
(28:49):
to try that. I'm like, cool.
I mean, I have no idea where youplaying men's passage, but yeah,
me neither. But yeah.
But it's like we've talked aboutthis before, but my, you know,
our kids are growing up watchingwomen's sports at a degree that
is so much higher, like when we graduated our senior year.
So now this long time actually, but like I remember that World
(29:15):
Series was like the first one that you could watch on TV and
it was just the World Series andit like it was like only at the
end you could watch those things.
And I remember it was like such a big deal.
We were all watching, you know, the athletes, but now to have
just the volume you can watch onTV and and that it's just all
the time. It's just like women's sports
(29:35):
are are there all the time and and obviously people want the
products. I mean, it's just like, yeah, we
just have to keep showing it. But yeah, the MLB investment is
I'm really excited. I like, I just I woke up and it
was like the first thing on my social media feed.
I'm like, Oh my God, this is. I think it's also, I mean, I
mentioned this to you yesterday,Crystal, like the coaching scene
(29:55):
is interesting to me too becauseand I guess, you know, former
players were going to have opportunities, but the the
pinnacle of coaching in softballright now is the college game,
right? And he's like big, you know,
powerful or institutions. So like, like who's going to
take these like manager jobs? Like it's going to be
interesting to see like it it can't just be former players.
(30:15):
I mean, of course former playerscan do it, but it can't just be
these like young, like I mean, these a manager role is like a
huge, you know, like, you know, when someone in their like
early, early to mid 30s gets a manager role in men's sports,
it's like a huge deal how young they are, you know, So I think
like this is going to be interesting.
Are there going to be once it builds, is it going to be a more
favorable job? Are people going to leave the
(30:37):
college game and coach at the professional level like, you
know what, what is that going tolook like?
I think that's interesting because the athlete world makes
more sense, right? You finish your eligibility, you
go up. But I think the coaching world
will be so interesting because we really are rooted in, you
know, that's been the top level of our game.
So that's what people know to dowhen you want to stay in for
(30:58):
like a long time. So what they'll be, it's got
it's going to shake things up. Right well we were talking one
of my good like college friends was like, what does this mean
for you guys and I was trying toexplain like when we work with
professional athletes now it like they can't pay us.
No, we. Have to do it for free for them
(31:20):
to try to help them. And we want to help them and we
want to train, but they don't have the resources to go.
It's been a charity for the mostpart from us and that's
intentional. It's easier for a teenager to
get access to the resources, thehighest level of training
resources than professional athletes.
And so this idea that hopefully we are building towards a
(31:43):
platform where athletes at the highest level of the game have
access to the resources in a variety of ways.
Laura, what you're saying is that their organizations provide
resources. So when it is season, whether
that's pre season and leading into season, that that
organization provides resources that they need to be at the
(32:05):
highest level, whether that's medical staff, training
facilities, you know, all of that analytics like it's it
provides them that. And then that, you know, pro
system pays them enough that when they are not in season and
they are in offseason, that theyare able to access resources to
(32:25):
maximize themselves. And that they and that there's a
variety of things that that means that they get access to
the marketing and media that they should to build their
brands and to to be out there. That they get access to the
training resources that they need.
That they have enough money and access to not just be like, I
coach this team and I go use their facilities.
You know, I coach so that a lot of times, you know, professional
(32:49):
athletes coach in college so that they get access to the
facilities so that they can, youknow, do that.
So it's that they don't need to do that.
That they have money to be able to pay for what they want
outside of it and that their organization inside of it is
long enough time of year that they are in it and gives them
access to that. And I think that that's the
(33:09):
biggest difference, like for, I don't know that impacts us
besides growth of the game is amazing.
And we want to support that and be able to use all these
resources we built for the collegiate game at the
professional levels and show these, you know, sort of adult
women in the professional game how they can maximize themselves
and do all the things that we have worked so hard for.
(33:31):
But the biggest change to me is just like these women who are
supposed to be the highest levelof our game, need the resources
in and out of the pro league to be able to maximize themselves
and, and build into themselves as an athlete full time.
And that that will be the biggest change.
When as it starts to happen, that will just be really
exciting. And, you know, hopefully that
(33:53):
just gives us more opportunitiesto help them do that, which I
think is really our goal. I also think there something I'm
personally excited about and I see this in the college game as
well. And I think this does impact us,
you know, down the road is our you know, our work right now.
Why you know, yes, is obviously with athletes and training them
directly, but it is also in our work with developing coaches and
(34:16):
helping them to learn analytics and to understand bio mechanics
and to to really grow themselvesalongside of their athletes.
And So what I am really excited about is like this rise of
player development roles in the college game that are non
coaching roles that are more, I'll say like rooted in the like
the exercise science, the human performance side of it.
(34:38):
And I am really digging seeing people take these roles that
have backgrounds in the body in,you know, in a, in a performance
context that we're going to needthose same people.
We're going to need analysts, we're going to need player
development people just like theMLB has.
And so that, you know, yes, physical equipment, but it's
also in the, you know, I hope wehave a hand in evolving these
(35:01):
other player development supportstaff through our education,
through the work that we do to help the professional leagues
and, and beyond to continue to grow that.
Because it, you know, I think like we've learned, you guys
have learned that like you can have the tech, but having the
people to be able to use it, runit, collect it, give it back to
(35:21):
the players, Like that requires a system and it requires
different types of people in that system.
And so I'm looking forward to toworking with anyone interested
in from a player development standpoint, you know, that wants
to either, you know, evolve at their college job, but maybe has
aspirations professionally in a role like that and to give them
(35:42):
access to that, you know, so notjust playing.
Like driveline. I mean, this is what driveline
does, right? Right.
They they've got a lot of guys and then they'll kick them out
to MLB jobs. These guys take MLB jobs.
So, you know, I hope someday people can come to us.
Like a lot of times we have coaches now they'll come to us
and go back to the college game.But that this is a real like you
spend time here and then you kick up to the pro league to be
(36:04):
able to like manage at that level.
I mean, they're well, right now we're talking.
About like, just add some examples.
It's like in the pro league, it's like they're looking for
machines to be able to practice.They're looking for, they're
paying people to be bullpen catchers, right?
And to pitch. They pitch to their pairs.
No, we are like backyard type of.
(36:25):
The level of access and so we, it's, it's time for those things
to grow and, and eventually it'slike, you know, you're going to
have like a front office, you'regoing to try to win, you're
going to use this data and the way that's going to grow and
trickle down to the conversations we're able to have
when you're talking about. You know I just had a thought.
Too bad we are not millionaires and don't come from like mega
(36:50):
big bucks. All of us are like literally as
blue color like. You know.
Middle, middle, middle class people as against from where we
come from. But if we had some megabucks and
we were the front office of someof one of these teams, we could
crush it. Yeah.
Well, it's like good like wouldn't we?
Yes, that was. 1000%. We would just build it out.
(37:11):
We're like, we're taking the Chicago such and such and.
We're going to. Crush the shit.
That'd be awesome. I think it's just getting like
we've talked in the past about, you know, coming all the way
down to like a pitch count conversation.
Is that the only way that you like the real way in baseball
that they've been able to lead those conversations?
And again, baseball's a sorry. All right.
(37:33):
This is a. Start again, baseball.
Is a mess too. So it's not like they've nailed
the pitch count and the overuse problems.
It's a mess. But the way that they can lead
those conversations and start todo it is MLB because MLB is
interested and has the money to say everyone's hurt like what's
(37:53):
our plan? And so this idea of the, the
self All Pro League being an entity that is able to say, Hey,
let's look at the youth thing because we want to make sure
people, you know, we have the opportunity to keep making this
league grow. Let's soccer's doing this.
I reference it, but the, the proleague and soccer and the, the
USA soccer is investing a lot ofmoney in a long term study into
(38:14):
ACL injuries because it's such an issue for them and, and youth
and at the, the pro level. And they're trying to understand
if they can do, you know, take some actions to really curb some
of that. And so you this idea of a viable
self all pro league is exciting and for so many reasons.
It's not just about those women's experience, but it's
about growth of the game. Even in the in the youth level
(38:38):
where you have something, you know, an entity at the top
that's saying we need to look into this.
We need to do these things that sits in a room with the alliance
and PGF and U triple SA and says, hey, you know, let's all
talk about what we're doing hereand we just haven't had that
centralized entity. And so the fact that we're
putting resources into a centralized entity and saying
(38:58):
this is it like this is, you know where we're going.
I think it's like it's about time.
You know, I think it's about time and it's it's going to be
really saying it's going to takea minute next year is not going
to be we've nailed. It like literally the shit we're
talking about is going to be like 5 to 10 years.
Yes, Yeah, we don't. Whatever the F word is when we
bleep. So that's right about that and
(39:20):
we'll be bleeping it. Basically, let the games begin.
Yeah, yeah. You got to get on the map to
get. It might be 5 years away, 10
years away, the type of world that we're envisioning, but you
got to start somewhere. So let the.
Games begin. All of this is going to lead to
that USA gold. Sorry.
To our friends in Canada and Great Britain, we love you and
(39:42):
we're going to train you. It's really hard to try to beat
USA. We're going to really change,
but at the end of the day, I don't know.
No eagles. Got some bias?
All right, well, until next time.
Exciting stuff. We really went on a journey
today, talked about obstruction,but into the good stuff and self
all continues to soar and we're obviously here for it.
(40:04):
So until next time.
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