Sorry to disappoint you football fans, but I’m not talking about the XFL started this year. No, there’s something better—I freely admit the word “better” is used completely subjectively here—on the way, and I’m so excited!
For years, the best softball athletes in the world have suffered what few athletes from other sports have not faced. For football, baseball, hockey, soccer, and even bowling, there are professional leagues for these athletes to move on to once they’ve finished their collegiate careers. More often than not, these players have a solid chance at playing professionally and actually making sport their livelihood. Softball players, however, have found themselves on the opposite side of that spectrum.
The pinnacle of most softball players’ careers right now is the collegiate level. More specifically, the highlight for many is making the Women’s College World Series. Winning the WCWS, of course, is an even greater feat. With the exception of those players who go on to make the U.S. Women’s National Team and play in worldwide tournaments with “USA” across their chests, most softballers hang up their cleats for good after their college days are over.
A tiny percentage of players have been lucky enough to make the National Pro Fastpitch Draft over the course of the last few decades. In 2019, the NPF Draft consisted of just 25 picks. I won’t pretend to be great at math and try to figure up just how small a percentage that is compared to the number of potential softball athletes in the NCAA to choose from, but I will say this—it’s miniscule when likened to that of NCAA baseball and the MLB Draft.
The lucky ones who squeeze into the NPF’s miniscule draft are financially compensated in a small way. The league currently has six teams, each of which have anywhere from 16-28 players each. There is a $175,000 salary cap for each organization. On average, for teams who have a full roster of 28 players, the average full season salary is about $6,250. Some players make closer to the minimum $3,000 season-long salary, which was even less before a minimum salary clause set the new precedent in 2017. For every player who is paid less than the average $6,250, “freed up” money is given to better players who constitute higher pay. Of course, teams with less players logically pay their players more, but this is the best generalized example I can give to illustrate how poorly the best of the best are paid. If you need a simpler example without specific figures, here ya go: the New York Yankees’ bat boy literally had an exponentially higher salary than a starting pitcher for the USSSA Pride back in 2019. That bat boy is still earning more than even the best NPF players.
While the NPF does provide an opportunity for softball players to continue competing post-college, the league has struggled significantly with leadership issues that have leant to poor organization of the NPF’s overall structure. The past two Cowles Cups (equivalent to the MLB’s World Series or the NFL’s Super Bowl) winners have departed the league the years immediately following their big wins. Scrap Yard won in 2017 and departed the league in 2018 to become an independent pro traveling team. The USSA Pride won the cup in 2018 and 2019, yet earlier this year, the Pride followed in Scrap Yard’s footsteps and left as well. Although a majority of teams technically folded, Scrap Yard and the Pride joined countless others who have abandoned the NPF. Over the league’s 16-year history, more than 15 teams have exited the organization.
The realist in me acknowledges that all of some of these struggles will simply take time to overcome. Pay discrepancies between men’s sports and women’s sports are unfortunately common across the board. Perhaps best known are the U.S. women’s hockey and soccer teams’ public fights for equal pay. WNBA players make just a tiny fraction compared to their NBA counterparts. I’ve read several interesting and convincing arguments that in time, these women will be paid equally whenever advertising dollars, ticket sales, airtime, and overall popularity increase. I’ll bite, but at the same time, something has to give. And it’s about to—in a major way. Lucky for me, softball just happens to be the leadoff hitter in this revolution.
In just one month, the new league, Athletes Unlimited, is going to spark the change. The entire league is being built around player ownership and a unique scoring system. Co-founded by John Patrifoc and Jonathan Soros, AU is going to capitalize on both softball’s national popularity and a growing trend toward athlete empowerment. With this is going to come much higher, maybe even livable, salaries for players.
Rather than playing in multiple cities or venues, AU will begin with all four of its teams based in an Illinois metropolitan area. Individual players will earn a minimum compensation of $10,000 and will be able to earn a combined base and bonus of up to around $35,000 over the course of the short six-week season. According to AU’s website, players will also earn 50 percent of the league’s revenue and receive profit participation for 20 years. This means any player who participates in 2020 will receive a share of any profits generated by the league through 2039. This pay system was deliberately structured to incentivize and reward players who commit to developing the league. Player housing will also be covered as well as health insurance if needed, both of which were not available to players who participated in the NPF.
The inaugural season includes 56 athletes on four teams each playing 30 games over five weeks. There will be no coaches, and teams will be redrafted each week by the four players who earn the most points the previous week.
“Earn the most points? What does that mean?” you ask. Well, that’s the best part of this entire new deal. Unlike any pro sports league in existence, AU has a new, innovative, unique scoring system. The majority of a single player’s points will come from her team winning games and innings with additional points being awarded for individual stats.
The Athletes Unlimited team scoring system allocates points to the winner of each inning as well as to the winner of the game overall. The Athletes Unlimited system essentially does away with fixed teams by redrafting every roster every week but in order to draft players, athletes have to become a team captain. The way to do that? Earn as many points possible. The top four players every week are dubbed “MVPs” and are given captain status to pick their next team. Think schoolyard dodgeball style.
After the last game of every week, the MVPs will then be assigned to a team color based on their standing: gold, blue, orange, or purple. Team captains can consult with anyone they want prior to the opening of the draft, including any AU staff, former coaches, and teammates. Each week during the draft, every captain will be given up to 2 minutes per pick. Once a player is selected their captain may consult them for further decisions. Once all 56 players have been selected to a team, it will be time to prepare for the upcoming slate of games and get ready to play ball.
Then, an exciting new week of competition will begin.
Literally as the game unfolds, players will be steadily gaining or losing points. “Win points” are all about the team performance. They accumulate during both individual innings and overall game wins. Each inning is worth +10 points and overall games are worth +50 points. If an inning is tied, the points roll over to the subsequent inning.
After each game, the players will vote for three players who they feel had standout performances. These points will be added to the player’s individual total. Points will be awarded as follows: MVP 1: +60 points, MVP 2: +40 points, and MVP 3: +20 points.
The final component of points is individual stats. Position players and pitchers will earn points based on their performance. The breakdown for individual points is as follows: Single: +10 points, Double: +20 points, Triple: +30 points, Home run: +40 points, Stolen base: +10 points, Caught Stealing: -10 points, and Base on balls: +10 points. So, if a batter goes 3-for-5 with two singles and a home run but is caught stealing, they will be awarded 50 points: 10 (S) + 10 (S) + 40 (HR) – 10 (CS) = 50 points. Pitchers earn +4 points for every out and -10 points for each earned run allowed. For example, if a pitcher throws 5.2 innings and allows two earned runs, they would earn 58 points: (17 x 4) – (1 ER x 10) = 58 points. A player’s points determine their ranking, which will be used each week for the draft.
The excitement for AU softball has been through the roof since the announcement of the new league came in April. Its board of directors is comprised of high-profile contributors from sports, business, and entertainment. Some include two-time NBA champion Kevin Durant, Abby Wambach from the U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team, two-time Olympic medalist and captain of the USA Women’s National Volleyball Teach Jordan Larson, ESPN broadcaster and four-time first-team All-American softball standout Jessica Mendoza, and others. The league’s following on social media quickly outnumbered that of the NPF and garnered the attention of numerous professional athletes. Within weeks, the league announced it would add two more women’s pro sports: lacrosse and volleyball, both of which, like softball, were in desperate need for well-planned pro leagues. However, the best indicator of its coming success came last week when AU announced that all of its softball games would be aired on ESPN and CBS, which is monumental given not a single NPF game has been aired on any major sports network.
I realize there aren’t many softball nerds in our small community. For the few that do exist here, I hope you’ll pencil in these game nights for your little girls. These women who will take the field are the best there are, and they are finally getting a real shot at making softball their career. For those of you who have no interest in softball, maybe you’ll turn on the tv in a few weeks, too. I guarantee you’ll love this game. Up until now, these athletes have continued to grind it out for the love of the game because fame and fortune certainly weren’t part of the equation for them. Softball is an extremely fast-paced, competitive game with tons of action. Factor in the changes AU is making to how the teams are structured and how players are rewarded for performing well and I promise, you’re going to be absolutely hooked.
