Each spring, NRPA encourages departments to host a free Pitch, Hit & Run (PHR) Presented by Scotts Local Competition. MLB PHR provides boys and girls the opportunity to compete and advance separately through four levels of competition, including Team Championships at each Major League ballpark and the National Finals hosted during MLB All-Star Week.
Hosting this one-day event is free, easy, and an exciting and educational program for kids of all skill levels. From the all-star players in your town to those just learning the sport, PHR brings families together as a community to enjoy our country’s national pastime. For some lucky youngsters, your local event is just the starting point to an experience of a lifetime. Last summer, eight of the 24 PHR national finalists began their journey by participating in local competitions hosted by their community park and recreation department. The cities of Mesquite, Texas, and Suffolk, Virginia, are two of the many recreation departments that have advanced players to the National Finals and MLB All-Star festivities.
Fourteen-year-old Amy Jensen of Parker, Texas, is no stranger to community recreation departments. In 2014, Jensen’s journey started when she competed at Mesquite Parks and Recreation’s local competition and concluded at the National Finals at Target Field in Minneapolis. Not only did she advance with the help of recreation department staff, she also grew up on these fields. Amy’s father, Richard Jensen, attributes his daughter’s success to the dedication and effort by local recreation departments. “The journey started with the local event sponsored by the recreation department,” he says. “Without them, Amy would not have had the opportunity to participate in PHR and would not be playing softball at an elite level.”
Across the country in Suffolk, Virginia, 10-year-old Clay Grady began his journey to Target Field by competing in the Suffolk Parks and Recreation local competition. When Clay found out about the competition, his family had to explain it was only the first stop along the way to make it to the finals, but Clay knew he would be at Target Field all along.
“Clay’s story shows what recreation departments are all about — creating opportunities for kids to have fun, grow physically and emotionally, and achieve their dreams, even when they seem impossible. Every day these programs impact children in a positive way. I will be forever grateful that they gave my son the experience of a lifetime and taught him it’s okay to dream big,” says Clay’s mother, Tracy Grady.
Give the kids in your community the opportunity to feel like All-Stars by signing up to host a MLB Pitch, Hit & Run competition of your own.
Kate Viebrock works with MLB Pitch, Hit & Run.