Building the Future of Pro Softball: Why the AUSL Is Capturing National Attention with Sam Fischer

Athletic Intelligence Episode 6 Transcript

Building the Future of Pro Softball: Why the AUSL Is Capturing National Attention with Sam Fischer

Timestamps listed are for reference. You can manually skip to them in your podcast player.

[00:00] Sam Fischer: You started to see the math that the more you practice, the better you become. So it was like starting to see the formula. I went from kind of being a sometimes player on my travel team to like being the eight hitter and slowly starting to see those steps. 

Meet Sam Fischer: Olympic Softball Star and AUSL Trailblazer

[00:18] Narration: That's Sam Fischer, Olympic softball player, Athletes Unlimited Softball League veteran, and the first athlete to ever hit a home run in league history.

[00:26] Narration: Over more than a decade at the game's highest levels, she's earned a reputation for clutch hitting sharp defense and the kind of softball IQ that kept her ahead of the competition. 

[00:37] Announcer: Fischer with a rocket to deep left and gone. What a grab by Sam Fischer. At short, she turns two with. Textbook defense from Fischer. Fischer showing why she's one of the games best.

[00:52] Announcer: Another faulty hit game for Sam Fischer. She makes it look effortless out there. Sam Fischer with the first home run in AUSL history. History made. 

[01:07] Narration: Now, she's on the other side of the game, serving as Senior Manager of Softball Operations at the AUSL. In this episode, Aman Loomba, GameChanger's, SVP of Product is joined by Anna Nickel, Senior Marketing Manager, who brings a rich background both on the field as a softball player and in the dugout as a youth and collegiate coach.

[01:27] Narration: Together they sit down with Sam to talk about her journey from backyard wiffle ball to the highest stage of. Softball and now her work at the AUSL. Sam shares how great coaches growing softball IQ and early tech, like video analysis shaped her game and why balancing data with instinct is key. Plus, the rise of softball pros as role models,

[01:48] Narration: ML B's investment in the sport, and what it really takes to stay at the top.

[01:56] Narration: This is Athletic Intelligence from GameChanger. A show where we go deep inside the world of baseball and softball, uncovering the tech that's shaping the game.

From Backyard Wiffle Ball to Big Dreams

[02:10] Anna Nickel: If you don't mind, I would love to just start out with the beginning. Tell us about the first ball you threw. Tell us about where your softball journey really kicked off. 

[02:20] Sam Fischer: I mean, it all started in the backyard. My dad and I threw the ball back and forth. I think we had a wiffle ball at first. Um, I had to have been

[02:28] Sam Fischer: three or four years old, just throwing it back and forth. My dad played like tournament slow pitch and he played baseball as a kid. So, naturally that's gonna be something that you do with your kid and I just happened to enjoy the heck out of it. So I can remember back in the backyard starting to hit the wiffle ball and trying to hit it over the neighbor's fence and that, I think, you know, the first time that that happens, you're like, oh, this feeling is something fun.

[02:53] Anna Nickel: So funny. I, I think we've all had a moment where you're like, I just did that. I did something really cool right there. And your parents are like, are you good at this? And I imagine if your dad was a, you know, ballplayer, he's like, oh man, sky's the limit, right? And how many parents look at their kid when they're three or four and that like, Olympic dream comes into fruition.

[03:14] Anna Nickel: So, that's pretty crazy. Was that your dream growing up? 

Dreams Evolve: From Fun to Fierce Competitor

[03:19] Sam Fischer: It's actually really funny that you bring it up because I wasn't good right away. It wasn't until I probably hit a turn around 12 and a little older, like 12 to 14 was when it was like, wait, maybe, maybe you can be better than good. But early on it was very much like, this is so much fun.

[03:37] Sam Fischer: Like we're just having so much fun. I loved competing. I learned from a very early age that I was extremely competitive to the point where I would like, cheat at checkers with my grandparents to try to win. It's like, all right, Sam, like we see that there's something here. But, um, everything for me with softball happened in phases, so I didn't really know that there was college softball until I got to a, you know, a certain age.

[04:00] Sam Fischer: And I remember thinking college like that's so much homework, which the irony is like, I kind of am a little bit of a nerd. I loved school, but I'm like, that seems like it'd be too much. But then dreams and and goals kind of evolved as I started to go to each level with softball. So, I know we always enjoyed watching the Olympics, and so that was what you looked up to when you were little.

[04:20] Sam Fischer: Like, I knew when I was little I couldn't play in the MLB, but then seeing the Olympics, it was like, oh, well, like that's kind of crazy. That'd be cool. But it was always a dream. It was never a goal. There's one team in the country, like, let's be realistic a little bit, Sam. 

[04:33] Aman Loomba: What about down at the level you were at when you're 12, when you were first realizing there's something here?

[04:39] Aman Loomba: What kind of a team were you playing on? Like how, what was the organization like? Were you just rec and school, or was there more than that at the time you were playing? 

Finding Purpose and Progress in Travel Ball

[04:46] Sam Fischer: Yeah, it was actually when I was 12 was the first time I played travel ball, so I was playing rec ball and travel ball and then for my like middle

[04:53] Sam Fischer: school as well. So it was also the year that I started to grow a little bit. So that was really helpful. I kind of shot up, and so I started to see that because I loved softball so much and because I was spending so much time, like we were the first one to the field and we were the last one to leave, you started to see the math that the more you practice the better you become.

[05:13] Sam Fischer: So it was like starting to see the formula. I went from kind of being a sometimes player on my travel team to like being the eight hitter and slowly starting to see those steps, and then I fully transitioned over to just travel ball in my second year of 12 and under. 

[05:28] Aman Loomba: And did you have coaches that sort of helped you see that path forward, that helped you think about playing in college, playing in the Olympics?

[05:37] Aman Loomba: Were there people in your life who were, you know, giving you the insight into this possible future for yourself? 

Coach Andy: A pivotal Youth Coach

[05:42] Sam Fischer: I've had so many amazing people that have influenced me, um, and influenced my career. But my parents at the end of the day were the ones who were like, well, what do you wanna do? Okay. Like, go do it.

[05:51] Sam Fischer: You know? Let's be realistic about it. You know, what is it gonna take to get these things? If you're gonna talk about something and achieving something, we're not just gonna let you talk about it. We're gonna, you know, you're gonna work for it. But I remember my 10 and under Gold All-Star, coach Andy, he was probably the one who was like, at least somebody other than my parents, who was like,

[06:10] Sam Fischer: Hey man, like you can be as good as you wanna be, you know? And, and just encouraging. And I was still like the eight hitter and I wasn't like the standout, but I was on the Gold All-Star team. That was something, you know? 

[06:21] Aman Loomba: Yeah. This, it's one of my favorite questions to ask athletes is who was the coach, Andy, in your life?

[06:26] Sam Fischer: Mm-hmm.

[06:26] Aman Loomba: Because it's something that I've learned every, everybody has. I was not an athlete myself as a kid. I didn't have one of these, but I learned from as early as when I was interviewing at GameChanger with our founder Ted Sullivan. He told me, he was like, Aman, you, you probably had a teacher who made a big difference in your life that you remember by name.

[06:42] Aman Loomba: For me, that was a coach and everyone who's really committed to sports and playing, you know, as an athlete for life, has that story and it's always so interesting to hear who it was and what time and at their life it occurred in. 

[06:53] Sam Fischer: I love to hear that too because I know like over the years with how many people I've encountered, and even with social media blowing up, a lot of times you see it in the reverse where you see a negative impact that a coach had or somebody who said you couldn't accomplish something, and I really feel like I've had plenty of people in my life

[07:09] Sam Fischer: that went that route. But like the things that really stick out that I love to focus on are the positives and the, the coach, Andy and, and those people who are just like, you know, proving them right instead of proving the others wrong. I've always really liked that kind of path. 

Coaching from Home: Sam’s Parents and Their Balanced Roles

[07:23] Anna Nickel: Yeah. Did your parents coach you as well, or did they get to be parents?

[07:27] Sam Fischer: My dad was the, in the dugout with us all the way up until I was a senior in high school. He was in the dugout, but he was very much like the chill, kind of there for everybody. You know? Whenever one of the harder coaches got on him, he, they'd go to my dad and be like, and he'd be like, there there,

[07:41] Sam Fischer: you're doing great. Um, and then my mom was like. What are we eating for the snacks after the game? So the balance I think for me was so huge that I didn't realize it as a kid. They were total opposites. And my mom was like, make sure you put on sunscreen. Like, have fun. But they, especially my dad did a good job of like, he was my dad.

[08:01] Sam Fischer: He, I never looked at him as like, oh, that's my coach. You know, even though I look back on it like he was the best coach I ever had. So it's, I think pretty interesting and a really good job on his part to have it to where we were able to disconnect the two. 

[08:14] Anna Nickel: I think that's a really special balance to have a parent who could do both.

[08:19] Anna Nickel: The times I hear athletes can play, why they stop playing of times is because their parent couldn't turn off being coach and be a parent. And be a coach and on and off the field. So to find that I think is so rare, but. It also speaks to, I think they were letting you drive your own car. You said, I wanna do this, and they allowed you to do that.

[08:38] Anna Nickel: They allowed you to be yourself and allowed you to evolve on your own time. It sounds like you did truly have your own own path and evolving from that, you know, 10 to 12 in your mind, what was the year where you had the big evolution where all of a sudden you were like. Wow, I'm good at this. Like I'm really good at this.

The First Home Run: A Career-Defining Moment

[08:56] Sam Fischer: Honestly, the first time I ever hit a home run over the fence, that was a big one. I can remember that feeling. Oh my God, that's so awesome. And still like to the end of my career felt the same way across the board. Anytime that ball went over the fence, it was like. Fireworks, you know, so I think that was around like 2004.

[09:14] Sam Fischer: I was 14. I hit the ball over the fence for the first time and I'm like, okay, Sam, like this is, this is what's up. This is why you really like this. And like I said, I had grown a lot too. So like I, I had this bigger body now that was stronger. And you know, the travel ball team that I was on at the time was very much into not just the softball stuff, but like the strength and conditioning side too.

[09:35] Sam Fischer: So I was starting to see like. The physicality of, of what being an athlete really means and, and starting to get better in the little places like refining my game and like the softball IQ things that I was starting to really embrace and learn and, and try to improve on.

Puberty, Growth, and the Physicality of Softball

[09:53] Narration: As we heard from OGX's Krista Stoker in episode two of Athletic Intelligence, Going through puberty can be a turning point for young athletes and their performance. Bodies change fast, strength comes quickly, and the game starts to feel different. Today that stage comes with another layer as players' bodies, and minds develop.

[10:11] Narration: They're also learning how to navigate a new wave of tech bat sensors, radar guns, video tools, all showing exactly how those changes play out on the field, which is where Aman Loomba stepped in. Curious about the role tech played during that turning point.

[10:29] Aman Loomba: What kinds of tools were helping you even, even back at that age 12, 14, when you're just starting to realize softball is my thing. Was it just coaching? Were you into stats? Was there another kind of a tool that really helped you like focus on improving your game? 

[10:45] Sam Fischer: Yeah, I love numbers so much that it was like a problem to where I'd be like calculating my batting average at shortstop.

[10:52] Sam Fischer: So it, it was like, all right, you need to tone that down a little bit. But I was very basic, like I would hit off the tee, I would do front toss. Back then, you know, they didn't have the cameras and the cell phones, so we had to do set up like a camcorder to look at your swing and that was as intense as it got, as far as the tools.

[11:09] Sam Fischer: But everything was really basic and I really feel like for me and the type of player that I was and needed to be was it allowed me to like, create the feel that I needed to know. Okay. How. What do I need to fix if I'm not successful, and what do I need to stick with because I'm successful? 

From Camcorders to RightView Pro: The Tech That Shaped Her Swing

[11:25] Anna Nickel: Do you remember the first softball tech on the market that you used?

[11:30] Sam Fischer:  Yeah, it was called Right View Pro. 

[11:31] Sam Fischer: Yeah. And it was, yeah. And I remember I would put my swing up next to Jim Edmonds or Albert Pujols and be like, okay, here's what they're doing, and then let's break it down at the same time as me, and try as much as you can to look like that. 

[11:48] Anna Nickel: Did you like it? Or were you like, Ew, I don't wanna look like that, or, I don't look like that?

Sam’s Swing: An Obsession with Mechanics and Feel

[11:51] Sam Fischer: No, I loved it. I, I thought it was so cool to get so nitty gritty into the swing and like, 'cause I like my swing. Gosh. It was like my child. Like I wanted it to be as great as it could be, and it was mine. And obviously, like, I only watched baseball growing up, so I see Jim Edmonds. I see Albert Pujols, I'm like, I wanna hit the ball as far as they do, like, I don't care.

[12:12] Sam Fischer: That's what I want. 

[12:13] Aman Loomba: So that tool is basically like kind of an evolution of the camcorder, right? It's a

[12:18] Sam Fischer: A hundred percent. 

[12:20] Aman Loomba: It's a way to record yourself and then to compare your swing to. Literally to pros in this case. 

[12:23] Sam Fischer: Yes. Yeah, absolutely. And I think at the time too, they had like a Jessica Mendoza swing.

[12:28] Sam Fischer: It was all MLB guys. 

[12:30] Aman Loomba: Did it help? 

[12:30] Sam Fischer: Yes, absolutely. And it's something that I took with me as I got older. And then especially when I started teaching, knowing how to use video, that was something that I think was really important, was knowing what it means. What am I looking at? What am I looking for? And I think that program, because I knew what I was looking at and looking for, it helped me in the long run.

[12:49] Anna Nickel: I think it's crazy that now there's a young girl out there comparing herself to Sam Fischer saying, do I look like Sam Fischer when I swing? I know there are athletes out there who are thinking that today.

Sports Tech Is Everywhere — But Is More Always Better?

[13:03] Narration: Growing up, Sam's reference point was MLB players she watched and studied. They set the standard for what it meant to be great. Today, girls still have that, but they also have softball pros to look up to. And now they compare that kind of inspiration with something those earlier generations never had at that age.

[13:22] Narration: Data that shows exactly how they're progressing and where they can improve.

[13:30] Anna Nickel: Young athletes have access to all the tech now. They have access to velocity, they have access to spin rates, biometrics. How do they navigate that? How do you think that allows them to be better? Or maybe it's paralysis by analysis? 

[13:44] Sam Fischer: I think it's such a good question and I think that I, I'm an interesting person to answer it because I am

[13:51] Sam Fischer: at this point, like an old dog, I know what made me successful and so I cannot imagine using that stuff now. But if I was 15 right now and that was what was available to me, I don't know, would that be something that would help me? But I, I feel like I know because I was so into numbers and still am like,

[14:10] Sam Fischer: I think for me personally, it would've been a little paralysis by analysis. 'Cause if I can look at every single thing and just pick things apart, then I could always find something wrong. And that to me is really, really scary. I like to think of myself as  hitter who could hit bad balls and could look ugly doing something and still poke a hit.

Balance Over Burnout: Avoiding Paralysis by Analysis

[14:30] Sam Fischer: I feel like if there were too many tools when I was developing, it would make me nervous to take away that piece of me where it's like, okay, if my swing's not perfect every time, I'm not gonna get results. But like in reality, like the swing does not have to be perfect every time. The swing is probably less often perfect than you realize.

[14:47] Sam Fischer: There is something to say about the tech that's available and there also is something to say about the feel. So I think there has to be a balance because if you don't have feel as a player, as a hitter, as a defender, then that's gonna be a hard thing to make corrections or make adjustments if you don't have that piece.

Coaching Cues and Experience Remain Irreplaceable

[15:05] Aman Loomba: Yeah, this is, this is a really interesting theme I think of this podcast so far, is that there's tons of information and the information can definitely help coaching and definitely help finding the things that need to improve and give you evidence that they have improved, but the machines aren't giving the cues yet.

[15:22] Aman Loomba: You still need a coach there to give you the cue at the end of the day, and that is just as important, maybe still more important than any of the supposed objective data that's coming in through these technologies. 

[15:35] Sam Fischer: Yeah, and I even think about when I was in college and I was going up against a, a team that I had never faced.

[15:40] Sam Fischer: Like I would go to that team's stat lines and see, okay, this picture has thrown this many innings, given up this many hits, here's her batting average against, and trying to make some sense of those numbers and like, oh, she's got a lot of strikeouts I need to attack early. Like that kind of thing. I think the data now with like, you know, the analytics and stuff where it's like she throws a first pitch strike

[15:59] Sam Fischer: 30% of the time like that, I think could have been something that would've been really helpful to me. As someone who used that kind of thing in my approach. 

[16:08] Aman Loomba: How would you advise them to incorporate it into their coaching and and development regimen without losing sight of the fundamentals, the heart of the game?

No Cookie-Cutter Players: Customizing Coaching with Tech

[16:16] Sam Fischer: One thing that I love the most about softball is that nothing about it is cookie cutter. Everything is different, and that goes from plays on the field, pitches, whatever, to the players who play it. So like while I might've been a player who, if you gave her too much information, she would've imploded.

[16:32] Sam Fischer: There could've been somebody that I played right next to that would've needed that in order to feel prepared and to be successful. So I think that the ultimate thing, and this goes across the board with anything, whether it's data, whether it's workouts, whether it's, you know, conversations like getting to know your players and especially for parents like getting to know your kids that, you know what this doesn't feel like it's working for her.

[16:52] Sam Fischer: What's a different approach that might make more sense? And so kinda what we said early on, like being a little bit in the driver's seat where the kid is like, oh my God, I'm eating up this data. Like this is exactly what I need to feel prepared. Then tailor it to her. If it's another kid who's like, she's frozen because she's thinking about too much stuff.

[17:11] Sam Fischer: Then you, you limit what she gets or you give things to her that she can then decide how she wants to use it. So I do think that it's definitely based on each kid and how, how they find success. 

[17:22] Aman Loomba: Mm-hmm. Know the audience and, and you can give them 

[17:24] Sam Fischer: exactly 

[17:24] Aman Loomba: the right message, right? 

[17:26] Sam Fischer: Yes.

[17:33] Narration: Sam credits her coaches and their belief in her with helping her reach the highest level of the sport. She went on to play in the AUSL, represent her country, and compete in the Olympics multiple times. By then, she was living the full pro experience — big crowds, national pride, even her own walkout song every time she stepped up to the plate.

[17:55] Aman Loomba: I just wanted to know at what point, “Rock You Like a Hurricane” became your walkup song. When did you choose it and why? 

[18:02] Sam Fischer: See these are the, this is the important question, right? Every year I picked my walkup songs with my dad. So 2009 was the first time I ever was gonna have a walkup song. And he was like, I found it.

[18:15] Sam Fischer: I found the one. And he played it. And I was like, oh my God, you're right. And you listened to it in a stadium and you're like, no, this is the one. This is hard to beat. I still have yet to hear a walkup song that's better than “Rock You Like a Hurricane.” 

[18:25] Aman Loomba: It’s fantastic choice. 

[18:26] Anna Nickel: “Back in Black” is 

[18:27] Sam Fischer:  Also a really good one

[18:28] Anna Nickel:  was my, was my walkout song, and it is like.

[18:31] Anna Nickel: I was a pitcher. 

[18:32] Sam Fischer: There you go.

[18:33] Anna Nickel: There's nothing better than walking into the circle with that beat behind. Yeah. It's pretty epic. 

[18:38] Sam Fischer: No, that's good. That’s really good.

[18:39] Aman Loomba: Can, can I say I, I'm not authorized to say, 'cause I don't really play a sport, but if I, if I did have a walkout song, mine would be, uh, “Burning Down the House” by the talking heads.

[18:48] Aman Loomba: I just wanna get it on the record.

[18:49] Sam Fischer: You should, that's good. 

From College to International Play: Stepping Up at Every Level

[18:50] Anna Nickel: As you were making these jumps in your career, like how did you stay on top of that next level? What were you doing training? How did you just stay up with it? Because every pitcher is getting better, every hitter's getting better, every level.

[19:04] Anna Nickel: How did you continue leveling up? 

[19:06] Sam Fischer: That was like the biggest challenge of them all. I'm glad that you asked that question because every different team or every different place I played, there was a new challenge and like if I wanted to keep playing, I had to meet it. You know? So going from high school to college, obviously now you're like a grownup and on your own and like, oh, I have to feed myself and also like get good grades and also go to practice.

[19:26] Sam Fischer: So like that transition in itself was just a whole thing. The biggest transition I think was going from college to international play. So like playing for team USA, the strike zone's different, the game's different. And then when I played professionally in Japan, that was I think arguably the biggest shift in what I had to do.

How Japan Changed Her Game

[19:43] Sam Fischer: 'cause they, oh my gosh, they're so good. And they can, the pitchers can like place the ball like you wouldn't believe. The first half I was out there, I'm like, man, these pitches are so outside. How am I supposed, but they're calling 'em strikes. How am I supposed to do anything with them? And I started to practice like hitting balls that were so far off the plate, try to hit them well and try to hit them fair.

[20:04] Sam Fischer: And that went for both sides of the plate inside and outside. But I would say that creating intention on what you're doing and knowing that you might have to make a few adjustments. Like I joke about being, you know, an old dog or like a little stubborn and stuff about my swing, but I look at the years.

[20:19] Sam Fischer: from like my senior year of college in 2012 to my last at bats in 2024. And there were adjustments. There were things that like I had to tweak if I needed to be, I need to be a little quicker, especially when I turned like 32 and 33. I'm like, you're slowing down girl. So how can I be quicker without completely changing everything?

The Mental Flexibility to Keep Adjusting

[20:37] Sam Fischer: Because that takes. That'd be crazy. So like, yeah, it was just about like kind of swallowing the pride a little bit and being like, well, I was good at this, you know, and, and now I'm not. It's like, Hey man, if you wanna keep being good, here's what you have to do. Instead of just thinking about what used to make you good, because that thing, that's still true, but it's back here now.

[20:53] Sam Fischer: So like, what's in front of you? How can you adjust and how can you continue to be successful until, until the end, essentially.

Knowing When to Walk Away from Playing

[21:09] Narration: After more than a decade at the game's highest levels, including multiple Olympic appearances, a history making first home run in the AUSL, and a career known for clutch hitting and elite defense, Sam Fischer stepped away from the field. 

[21:23] Sam Fischer: I don't think I made the decision. I think I just knew. I don't even know how to explain it, but it was like, yep, this is time.

[21:31] Sam Fischer: And then I said it out loud and then saying it out loud and was like, yep, that sounds right. That feels right. And and my heart and was like, this is, this is it. And everything since then has lined up in such a way that I was like, man. The universe is crazy because had I not retired, I would not be in this role, and Kim Ng wouldn't be my best friend.

[21:53] Sam Fischer: Like I can't imagine a world, you know that that's not real. 

From Player to Pro League Executive

[21:58] Narration: When the opportunity came to join the AUSL in a new capacity, Sam jumped at it. Today she works alongside Commissioner Kim Ng as Senior Manager of softball operations, a role where her years on the field give her a unique perspective on how to shape the league and support its players.

[22:15] Sam Fischer: That's like the best part about Athletes Unlimited is that people ask for it. They're like, Sam, like what would you think of this situation as a player? As we're working through things, I'd be like, here's what I would think as a player, here's what I know some of them would think as a player. Like it comes up all the time, and I think that's a really, really awesome thing.

[22:32] Narration: The AUSL is quickly becoming a fixture in the US sports scene in just a few seasons. It boasts passionate fan bases, people showing up in team colors, cheering on their favorite players, and packing stadiums from coast to coast. 

[22:46] Aman Loomba: Can you speak to how fan communities have developed around these teams?

[22:50] Aman Loomba: There's four teams in the league right now, right?

[22:51] Sam Fischer: Mm-hmm. 

[22:52] Aman Loomba: Is everyone just a Bandits fan 'cause they're at the top of the standings, or are people just following their favorite players? Is it about following Sis? Like how do the fans interact with this stuff? 

AU Pro Softball's Fanbase Is Growing Fast

[23:01] Sam Fischer: It's been really cool to see how it's kind of blossomed because,

[23:04] Sam Fischer: I've fortunately been to most of the sites for the first half, and I'll be there for the rest of the season, um, when the second half starts. But getting to see like, okay, who's like the favorite in this stadium, because who's cheering louder for who? And I've noticed like the Volts, I think have the biggest fan base from what I've seen in person.

[23:21] Sam Fischer: The cheers have been real loud for them. So, um, it's been cool to see like, why are they choosing this team? Especially because they're not based in cities yet. So it's not like, oh, it's my hometown team. Like, I can just easily pick them. But I do think, like you said, like the Bandits being top Bandits and Talons tied for first.

[23:37] Sam Fischer: Like, we might start to see like, oh, well they're the best team. Like, let's cheer for them. And, uh, even though like, I don't, I don't love a bandwagon fan, but like, I love when people are like getting on board. Like they see what's going on. They're like, I'm gonna cheer for them. So I do think that there's some people who have, you know, have players that they've really liked and wanted to see where they ended up and they decided what their team was gonna be when the allocation draft happened.

[23:57] Sam Fischer: So they've already decided like, Hey, I'm all in and I'm, I'm gonna rep this team. And that part, that part's really cool. 'cause like, I know myself, like, I wear Yankees, I'm a Yankee fan, so I wear Yankees stuff all the time. I got, you know, hats, jackets, shirts. I'm like, wait, people are out there doing the same thing, but it's for the Volts, for the AUSL and that kind of thing.

MLB’s Partnership with AU Pro Softball: A Game-Changer

[24:15] Narration: In May of 2025, Major League Baseball took a stake in the Athlete's Unlimited Softball League. Its first full scale partnership with a women's professional league, along with funding. MLB is bringing its marketing muscle and broadcast reach, putting AUSL games on MLB network and MLB.tv. It's a big moment for the sport, and we wanted to know what it means to Sam Fischer.

[24:39] Sam Fischer: Oh my gosh, it's so awesome. Like even just in our conversation right now, like I've already mentioned baseball, how many times like it, it was just part of like my generation and even younger than me, a little bit like this is what we looked at. Like if you liked softball, you liked baseball and you watched baseball.

[24:56] Sam Fischer: And so seeing that they are seeing our value and investing in us and partnering in, you know, with us it means just everything. And I can't, I don't know that I've found the right words yet to explain how impactful it is, especially to someone who like. When I grew up, like my idols were Derek Jeter and Mark McGuire and like Albert Pujols, like that's who I looked up to.

[25:17] Sam Fischer: And knowing that they're now looking at us and seeing like you guys can be those players that these young softball players are looking to, to where they might one day be like. Who's Derek Jeter? Like, I don't know, because they were too busy looking up to Sis Bates. I mean, Derek Jeter's a pretty tough example.

[25:32] Sam Fischer: I won't lie. Like everybody's gotta know who he is. But seeing that shift and, and showing that, like they want us to be the, you know, premier professional softball arena and like obviously the goal is to be as big as we possibly can be and to have it to where MLB has taken us under their wing and we're like, yeah, let's tweet about you.

[25:51] Sam Fischer: Let's invest in you. Let's help you with what you need to do. It's been so cool and it's been even just going onto the MLB app that you know most of us already had and seeing like, oh, there's little Athletes Unlimited blurbs, and you're like, oh my God, that's what we're doing. So it's been a little surreal, I would say, just because.

[26:10] Sam Fischer: MLB is, it's MLB. It's like America's pastime and they're like, we love you. So that part's really cool. 

H3: A Moment Generations in the Making

[26:17] Anna Nickel: You hit on this a bit, but the ripple effects of this partnership, again, I get chills thinking about this is the moment for softball. It's been such a long time coming, and it's no secret. Everyone loves watching the Women's College World Series.

[26:31] Anna Nickel: They love watching softball. They are tuning in. They're on the edge of their seats. Everyone's like, wow, what? What an incredible showdown in the sport. And now that gets to continue on in a really meaningful way. What do you see that looking like at all levels for the future as this ripples out? 

[26:50] Sam Fischer: There's so much, right?

[26:51] Sam Fischer: There's so much possibility. Even thinking like, what does this look like in five years? Like, I don't even know because you know, as soon as you graduate college and if you're playing professionally or with Team USA or anything like that, you talk about growing the game. 'cause you, you're out here now and you see it, you're like, there's not a lot of opportunity. You gotta be in this group to continue your career.

A Future Where Pro Softball is a Viable Dream

[27:09] Sam Fischer: Like from when I graduated in 2012 to now like, the growth that I have seen that I didn't realize was happening in real time, but when I look back I'm like, oh my God, things are crazy with how much they've grown. I don't even know what to imagine for the future. But I do know, like I'm picturing, like I said, a little bit about kids looking up to like Sis Bates, like, oh, that my favorite player is

[27:28] Sam Fischer: Sis or my favorite, this, you know, my favorite picture is, is Odicci Alexander. Like, the cool part about the AUSL and that we're in so many different places across the country is that these kids get to see it up close and personal and they get to see like, oh, she's playing pro. Like maybe I can do that, you know, and look up to more than just, um, college.

[27:47] Sam Fischer: Not that that's not a great thing to aspire to be, but like going and being a college player and then what's next to where it's not the end. And so we're kind of pushing the ceiling. Everything is, you know, higher and higher so that they have more opportunity to even just imagine what they could be. I didn't think I could be a pro softball player when I was growing up.

[28:04] Sam Fischer: 'cause there I didn't, I didn't see it. There wasn't anything anywhere. Why would I imagine that I could be that? So now they're, they're in a position to see that and work towards it. And then I think we're just gonna see better players younger. We’re gonna see people putting in, you know, the investment in these kids sooner, the way that they invest in youth baseball.

[28:23] Sam Fischer: Like, I, I think that it's just gonna, like you said, a ripple effect and that things are gonna get, start getting better younger and younger across the board.

More Opportunity, More Access, More Growth

[28:35] Narration: As Sam shared, the ripple effects of MLBs investment in the AUSL are already starting to show. More visibility, more opportunity, and a bigger stage for the game. Coupled with the technology now shaping player development and fan engagement, softball is entering a new era. The next generation will grow up not only with role models to follow, but with the tools to push their own game further.

[28:58] Narration: And if the ripple effect keeps growing, the sport will continue to shine brighter than ever. This has been Athletic Intelligence from GameChanger. If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to follow, rate, and share it. I hope you'll join us next time as we uncover the tech that's shaping the game.