BLASTBALL

What is it ?

BLASTBALL is a developmental game invented and marketed by the ATEC Athletic Training Company in the United States. It is a very simple concept utilizing the skills of Baseball in a fun fast paced activity for young players.

We have piloted this game with a number of groups. The results have been outstanding. It appears that the game is best suited as an entry level activity for players five and six years old. Seven year olds liked the game but needed to add some challenging aspects which come very close to T-Ball.

The game is an exceptional introduction to Baseball for a number of reasons:

• it is fun
• it is easy to play, players have instant success
• it is fast paced
• no gloves or special equipment needed by the player
• it runs within a time frame
• it does not cost a great deal to register
• it allows good and efficient use of facilities (5 or 6 games at a time on a diamond)
• minimal special equipment required
• minimal instruction for volunteers

In the following description ATEC recommends 6 players per team. Our pilot projects found that 5 was best but that is open for discussion. The critical decision for Local Association Administrators is to know when to add difficulty to the game. The kids catch on very quickly. The novelty of the noisy base wears off. You must be ready to add small incentives to the game to keep the kids challenged remembering at all times that attaining success is the number one priority to having fun. Some additions are as follows:

• add one throw  and subsequent catch to anyone by the defensive player who fields the ball. This throw can be to anyone on the defensive team anywhere in the field.
• add one throw and subsequent catch to one specific person on the defensive team.
• lengthen the distance of the base.
• rotate the defensive players position on the field after each batter
• widen the vector for the hitters
• add outs to the game instead of all players hitting each inning.
• reduce the size of the ball and/or bat.
• add a coach pitcher and lob the ball to the hitter
• have three teams on the field--one hitting, one defense, and one doing fundamentals.  Rotate at the end of each 1/2 inning.

This is a game that has the potential to create a great deal of interest in baseball for players of a very young age. It offers an exciting recreational event with a minimum of administration. One short Volunteer education evening would suffice.

BLASTBALL – YOU WILL BE SO GLAD YOU DID.

BlastBall provides an ideal entry level of play for the youngster who will go on to other advanced levels of the game. It is also a great fitness and recreational activity for schools and community programs as well as family and friends.

BlastBall is meant to put FUN back in to the game of Baseball. It is designed to generate fast-paced action, provide recreation and exercise, create enthusiasm and to encourage children to continue to play the game at higher levels.

BlastBall is very simple to organize and allows:

• it is inexpensive
• there are minimal operational expense for facilities, equipment and administration
• it does not require significant space to play like soccer, baseball and softball.  Up to 5 BlastBall games can be run at the same time on a typical baseball field.

BlastBall teaches all five basic fundamentals of baseball---hitting, throwing, catching, running and fielding.  It is also a ton of fun with fast, continuous action and simple rules.

BlastBall can be played indoors as well as outside.

Equipment is available at most local sporting goods stores.

For more information contact the Baseball Ontario Office at 519-740-3900,

 baseball@baseballontario.com