Global athletic leader New Balance names PROGRAM 15, the premiere baseball player development and training system, the Official Global Grassroots Player Identification and Development Program for New Balance Baseball.
New Balance Baseball has elevated their commitment to “Developing the Stars of Tomorrow” by announcing PROGRAM 15 as the Official Global Grassroots Player Identification and Development Program for New Balance Baseball.
Amateur players identified by PROGRAM 15’s National Staff of former Major League and professional players, scouts and coaches will be submitted to New Balance Baseball for advanced opportunities and potential selection to regional and national team rosters for New Balance sponsored events.
New Balance Baseball sponsors Future Stars Series and Area Code Games.
PROGRAM 15 has been responsible for executing the New Balance Baseball Future Stars Series Combines and Tournaments, an initiative between the two organizations to elevate the game of baseball by providing amateur players across all economic levels an opportunity to reach their full potential through the training, development, and guidance of former MLB players, scouts, and coaches.
Future Stars Series has experienced exponential growth over the last year. The grassroots effort by New Balance Baseball and PROGRAM 15 to reach as many undiscovered players as possible has grabbed the attention of over 70 of the most respected organizations in amateur baseball who have come on board as Regional Directors and Partners.
Founded by CEO and President of Baseball operations Jeremy Booth, PROGRAM 15 boasts a faculty and staff that includes multiple Major League All-Stars and World Series veterans.
Booth’s passion and drive have earned him the respect of the player evaluation and development world. Booth attributes his reputation and ability to evaluate and develop player potential to his diverse career as a pro player, hitting coach, scout and cross-checker for Major League organizations. This experience also led him to develop the Combine Athletic Testing System used by PROGRAM 15 staff.
Booth explains,”It was an incredibly valuable experience that provided me with a view that most people involved in this game just don’t have the opportunity to see.
I got to witness the evolution of success for a lot of players, which gave me a unique perspective that changed the way I look at amateur players and their potential. I discovered two very important things. First, that there are a handful of very key variables that have a huge impact on a player’s future in this game that weren’t being measured or even addressed in most player development processes. Second, many of the theories, data points, and evaluation methods being used as blindly accepted predictors of baseball talent are flat out wrong.
I’ve watched too many players and their families pay a ton of money to have their hopes and expectations mismanaged. While it’s easy put the blame on ‘Trophy Mills.’ I think this occurs more often due to misinformation and evaluation errors than intentional deception. It’s generally good people giving bad advice.
But what’s more troubling to me, and to the future of baseball, is the amount of raw talent that has gone unnoticed. Not just because of financial obstacles. I’ve seen players with tremendous potential neglected or completely ignored in the shadows of guys who happen to fit the current, and in my opinion, often flawed evaluation and prediction methods. Collectively, it’s a player evaluation and development failure, and I knew the whole process could be and should be better.
That’s the foundation on which the Program 15 Combine Athletic Testing System was created.”
Future Stars Series Evaluation and Training Combines are led and attended by the PROGRAM 15 National Staff of Major League Veteran players, scouts and coaches. Each player is provided field apparel and footwear by New Balance and put through PROGRAM 15’s Combine Athletic Testing System which includes a full scouting report, developmental feedback and plan to assist in their long-term growth from scouts who have signed Major League players.
For the latest Future Stars Series updates and announcements follow @ftrstarsseries on Twitter or visit http://futurestarsseries.com.
To learn more about PROGRAM 15, visit http://program15.com. And keep up-to-date with all of the latest PROGRAM 15 news and announcements on Twitter @Program15BB.
To learn more about New Balance baseball, visit http://www.newbalance.com/men/featured/baseball/, and follow @NB_Baseball on Twitter and @Nbbaseball on Instagram.
About PROGRAM 15:
PROGRAM 15, based in Houston, TX is built with the idea of quieting the noise and helping families to navigate the paths of proper instruction and development plans for all youth players with aspirations of playing baseball beyond high school and select ball levels through the execution of personalized development plans for each player.
About New Balance:
New Balance, headquartered in Boston, MA has the following mission: Demonstrating responsible leadership, we build global brands that athletes are proud to wear, associates are proud to create and communities are proud to host. New Balance is the only major company to make or assemble more than 4 million pairs of athletic footwear per year in the USA, which represents a limited portion of our US sales. Where the domestic value is at least 70%, we label our shoes Made in the USA. New Balance owns five factories in New England and one in Flimby, U.K. New Balance employs more than 5,000 associates around the globe, and in 2015 reported worldwide sales of $3.72 billion. To learn more about New Balance, please visit www.newbalance.com and for the latest press information please visit http://newbalance.newsmarket.com. Keep up-to-date with all of the latest New Balance news on Twitter @NewBalance and newbalance on Facebook.
