MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL NAMES EL1 SPORTS YOUTH BASEBALL AND SOFTBALL TRAINING PARTNER

Partnership Supports MLB's Grassroots Efforts to Increase Access to Quality Youth Instruction

NEW YORK and TACOMA, Wash., March 31, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Major League Baseball (MLB) and EL1 Sports (EL1), a leading national youth sports training company, announced a partnership to create a new self-sustaining and scalable approach to youth baseball and softball development. The partnership is designed to support existing local youth sports ecosystems around the country, and to promote the growth of the game by expanding access to high-quality youth baseball and softball instruction for players of all skill levels and socioeconomic backgrounds.

In this multi-year partnership, MLB clubs will have the opportunity to leverage EL1's expertise with facilities and instruction to establish or expand training academies and community programming in their markets. The company is adept at creating and operating facilities, helping current operators to reinvigorate their own facilities, and assisting teams at all competitive levels with badly needed administrative support and training regimens that complement existing coaches' systems.

EL1 currently operates nine indoor training facilities in Washington, California, Hawaii and Pennsylvania, including three Los Angeles Dodgers Training Academies. EL1 also provides instruction and administrative support for nearly 200 teams and for the Dodgers Dreamteam (formerly Dodgers RBI, Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities) program, and hosts hundreds of camps, clinics and tournaments nationwide serving tens of thousands of ballplayers.

EL1 Co-Founder and former professional player Aaron Trolia commented: "It's a dream come true to partner with MLB to expand opportunities for participation in the baseball and softball industry – for the up-and-coming athletes who need enhanced instruction and access, all the way to the pros who are looking for a career opportunity once their playing days have come to an end. We are also excited to help elevate the experience for facility operators and the leaders of club team and league organizations. We are coming to partner and work alongside you, bringing access to capital, a network, a robust brand, operational efficiencies, and the tools and systems to build a sound infrastructure."

Co-Founder Jameel Cante added, "Growing up, baseball was my first love. But it became so expensive that it was beyond the means of my family, so I had to give it up along with the friends who could afford to stay with it. In 2010 I helped start EL1 so that no family would have to make that same impossibly hard decision. And now, with the backing of Major League Baseball, we are going to be able to make good on that vision by increasing access to facilities, first-rate instruction, and the latest technology for athletes of all backgrounds - especially those in underserved communities."

Major League Baseball and its teams have created and funded many initiatives over the years to connect with communities, inspire participation at all levels of the sport, and promote parent/coach education – including Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities (www.mlb.com/rbi), PLAY BALL (www.mlb.com/play-ball), and the MLB Youth Academy (www.mlb.com/mlb-youth-academy). The new partnership with EL1 will create even more opportunities for grassroots youth participation and development initiatives as it includes a component that will create an ongoing source of funding for such programs, and it will allow teams to tap into EL1's instructional model.

One of the first by-products of the partnership will be in evidence at the 92^nd Major League Baseball All-Star Game in Los Angeles – where EL1 will be heavily involved in providing instructional programs at PLAY BALL Park and at other locations in conjunction with the LA Dodgers Foundation.

In a separate but concurrent announcement, MLB also introduced a new partnership with Diamond Kinetics, a sports-technology company pioneering the future of baseball and softball through mobile-based hitting and throwing technology that includes connected devices, computer vision functionality, and virtual reality integration. Diamond Kinetics and EL1 already have a longstanding relationship and will soon be announcing a formal partnership to integrate more digital learning tools into EL1 service offerings. All three parties view the combination of teaching, technique, and technology as a key to growing accessibility and engagement in youth baseball and softball.

About EL1 Sports
EL1 is a national youth sports training company created by athletes, coaches and educators who believe in the transformative power of sport. The company provides expert instruction and a full suite of administrative solutions in the service of athletes, teams, organizations, tournaments, and events. Co-founded in 2010 by former Seattle Mariners prospect Aaron Trolia and former Washington State football player Jameel Cante, both of whom continue to help drive the company today, EL1 operates under numerous banners including EL1 Baseball, the Dodgers Training Academy, Softball University, and Premier Sports Tournaments. EL1's "Powered By" Programs offer a wide range of services for softball and baseball teams, ranging from administrative and accounting support to registration and roster management to specialized instruction.  The company takes great pride in its ability to offer career paths in instruction and management to professional baseball and top collegiate softball alumni/players who wish to continue to give back to the game once their playing days are over.

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--- www.Elysian1Sports.com ---

SOURCE EL1 Sports