Baseball Factory, Inc. is a United States company specializing in player development and college placement of high school baseball players. The company is headquartered in Columbia, Maryland, approximately 20 miles southwest of Baltimore. Over six hundred events, across all 50 states, are hosted by Baseball Factory throughout the year, ranging from national tryouts to camps, tournaments and showcases. As of 2017, Baseball Factory has helped over 100,000 baseball players compete at the college level, garnering more than $1 billion in scholarships.
Baseball Factory was founded in 1994 by CEO Steve Sclafani, to provide a service that would train and educate players on the college recruiting process. In 2004, Baseball Factory acquired Team One Baseball, a baseball company for top-flight showcases. Baseball Factory provides high school baseball players with professional instruction, showcase opportunities, tournaments, and ongoing guidance in the college recruiting process.
History Baseball Factory was founded in 1994 in Columbia, Maryland by current CEO Steve Sclafani, in order to train and educate high school players on the college recruiting process. Alongside Baseball Factory, Inc., an inner-city middle school baseball program called B.A.S.E.-H.I.T. Foundation (presently the Baseball Factory Team One Foundation) was also launched. As the B.A.S.E.-H.I.T. Foundation continued to evolve in downtown Baltimore, Baseball Factory took their program nationwide. By 1997, the program reached over 1,000 players from 46 different states and had placed 90% of their players in a college baseball program.
In 1999, the National High School Baseball Coaches Association recognized Baseball Factory as the number one recruiting service in the country. The company also reached the $20 million mark in scholarship money offered to Baseball Factory players. By 2002, Baseball Factory players had received over $65 million in college scholarships. In addition, former Major League manager for the Colorado Rockies, and the Pittsburgh Pirates, Clint Hurdle, joined the Baseball Factory team as a hitting advisor.
The summer of 2005 marked the first ever Baseball Express Cape Cod High School Classic, powered by the Baseball Factory. The game featured 36 of the best rising senior and junior high school baseball players in the nation, including 17 future selections in Major League Baseball’s amateur draft.
On January 1, 2007, Under Armour selected Baseball Factory as the amateur baseball company to launch their baseball products through a grassroots effort. This partnership has included the Under Armour All-America Game, powered by Baseball Factory and held at Wrigley Field in Chicago, Illinois, bringing together 40 of the top high school athletes in the country, selected by a committee of Baseball Factory scouts. Since the game's inception in 2008, 284 of the 323 draft eligible players from the Under Armour All-America Game were selected in the MLB Amateur Draft including 83 first round picks. In 2017, the game celebrates its 10th anniversary, and will again be broadcast on MLB Network.
In March, 2009, Baseball Factory announced a strategic partnership with Little League International in order to provide youth players worldwide with increased player development and college placement opportunities. Little League International named Baseball Factory as the Exclusive and Official Player Development Partner of Little League Baseball. The primary focus of the partnership is the Little League Youth Clinic and Skills Challenges, powered by Baseball Factory. Baseball Factory conducts these events for Little and Junior League division players. The events are held at Little League, minor league, college and high school facilities nationwide.
In July, 2009, Baseball Factory partnered with American Legion Baseball in order to provide amateur players with new opportunities to develop their skills. Together the organizations will provide American Legion players with instructional camps, showcases and baseball clinics to supplement their experience with their local American Legion team.
In 2010, Baseball Factory teamed up with Roberto's Kids, an international non-profit organization, and the Pittsburgh Pirates to host an equipment drive that sent donated baseball gear to underprivileged communities around the world.
In February 2011, after 16 years of success assisting baseball players, the organization announced the launch of Softball Factory, a new division of Baseball Factory. Softball Factory was created to provide authentic training and college recruiting programs for youth and high school softball players. Softball Factory is led by Lea Ann Jarvis, the Director of Softball Operations. Lea Ann was a two-time First Team NCAA All-American while a standout performer at Louisiana Tech University. She went on to coach Division I college softball for 17 years and also played professionally. She then won two World Championships as a player with the USA National Softball Team. In addition to Lea Ann's experience, the Softball Factory's coaching staff of former college coaches, former professional players and former college players provides expert softball training and guidance for players nationwide. In January 2017, Softball Factory welcomed USA Olympic Gold Medalist and former collegiate All-American at the University of Arizona, Jennie Finch to the All-America Pre-Season Tournament held at the Scrapyard Sports Complex in Conroe, Texas where she spoke to players and their families during the welcome meeting and worked on-field with both pitchers and catchers.
Looking to build upon the success of Baseball and Softball divisions, Volleyball Factory is launched in 2013, led by former National Player of the Year and All-American at UCLA, Kristee Porter and the company transforms into Factory Athletics. Volleyball Factory now hosts over 40 events across in the country as well as high-level Player Development events such as Select Training at the NCAA Championship in that year's host city, Advanced Training in Colorado Springs, CO and at the Lake Placid Training Center in Lake Placid, NY. The American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) recognized Volleyball Factory as the Preferred Player ID Partner of AVCA Volleyball. This partnership allows Volleyball Factory to review all players attending an Under Armour Volleyball Factory National Tryout or College PREP event and recommend top players to the AVCA for Under Armour All-American Match and Phenom Program consideration.
Volleyball Factory teamed with DataVolley to provide players with an edge in the recruiting process. The top-rated DataVolley system is used at every Under Armour National Tryout and College PREP event and the video-capture software is used by nearly every collegiate program. Using DataVolley, the player videos record each player performing at their very best during live in-game action in a statistically relevant way.
In 2017, Baseball Factory continues to see a growing number of former alums reaching their dreams of playing collegiate baseball as 100% of NCAA Division I & II rosters and 96% of Division III rosters have at least one Factory alum on a roster. 41% of the players who played in the 2017 NCAA Division I College World Series were Factory alums.
Team One acquisition In 2004, Baseball Factory acquired Team One Baseball, a baseball company for top-flight showcases. Team One Baseball hosts showcases throughout the country for top players to perform in front of college coaches and professional scouts. Together, Baseball Factory and Team One Baseball have assisted players in obtaining over $500 million in college scholarships.
Notable alumni
Bryce Harper - Washington Nationals Kris Bryant - Chicago Cubs Anthony Rizzo - Chicago Cubs Francisco Lindor - Cleveland Indians George Springer - Houston Astros Alex Bregman - Houston Astros Josh Donaldson - Toronto Blue Jays Eric Hosmer - San Diego Padres Addison Russell - Chicago Cubs Rick Porcello - Boston Red Sox Nick Castellanos - Detroit Tigers Stephen Vogt - Milwaukee Brewers Byron Buxton - Minnesota Twins David Wright - New York Mets Mark Teixeira - New York Yankees CC Sabathia – New York Yankees Justin Verlander – Houston Astros Roy Halladay – Philadelphia Phillies Josh Hamilton – Los Angeles Angels Ryan Braun – Milwaukee Brewers Ian Kinsler – Los Angeles Angels Prince Fielder – Detroit Tigers Brian Roberts – Baltimore Orioles Brian McCann – Houston Astros Carlos Quentin – San Diego Padres Sean Rodriguez - Tampa Bay Rays Sam Fuld - Tampa Bay Rays Doug Waechter - Tampa Bay Rays James Shields - San Diego Padres Eric Chavez - New York Yankees Zack Greinke - Arizona Diamondbacks Delmon Young - Detroit Tigers BJ Upton - Atlanta Braves Justin Upton - Arizona Diamondbacks Kelly Shoppach - Boston Red Sox Chris Iannetta - Los Angeles Angels Jeff Francoeur - Kansas City Royals Jay Bruce - New York Mets Huston Street - San Diego Padres JP Howell - Tampa Bay Rays David Robertson - New York Yankees Jameson Taillon - Pittsburgh Pirates J.J. Hardy - Baltimore Orioles
Services
National tryouts The Factory provides instruction, tournament competition, and college planning and placement to high school baseball players nationwide. Together with Under Armour, Baseball Factory holds over 100 Under Armour Baseball Factory National Tryouts throughout the year. The tryouts are conducted as pro-style workouts and players are evaluated. Players who attend the national tryouts also become eligible for selection to Under Armour Baseball Factory National Tournaments, Training events and Showcases. College Recruiting Programs Baseball Factory offers college recruiting programs, including the Under Armour Baseball Factory National Tryout & College PREP (Premium, Recruiting, Evaluation Program) and the Exclusive College Recruiting Program. The Under Armour Baseball Factory National Tryout & College PREP offers players a professional video of their pro-style workout, as well as an evaluation from a professional scout. In addition, players receive a personal player web page and contact information for over 1,600 college coaches. College recruiting information and inclusion in the online database from which college coaches search daily is also included in the PREP. The Exclusive B.A.T.S. Program offers players the chance, in addition to the services provided in the PREP, to speak to personal recruiting directors throughout their college recruiting process. The program provides players with assistance in forming a realistic prospective college list, as well as guidance in contacting and communicating with college coaches. Each player receives personal assistance to further their academic and athletic career at the collegiate level. The Exclusive B.A.T.S. Program provides instruction on college recruiting, academic development, player development and life skills. Player Development Through mini-camps and specialty training camps held across the country, Baseball Factory offers players the opportunity to strengthen their game. Mini-camp events give players a chance to work on a more specific aspect of their game, such as hitting or pitching and catching. Baseball Factory also conducts week-long training camps for players to improve their game, including the Omaha National World Series, an event held in Omaha, Nebraska and at Iowa Western Community College, home of the Reivers baseball program, Baseball Factory National World Series and the Christmas Camp & Tournament at Pirate City, the Southern Home of Baseball Factory and the professional spring training facility of the Pittsburgh Pirates. Cape Cod Select Training & Competition, an event held at the home of the Wareham Gatemen in the Cape Cod Baseball League. Training/Lessons At their facility in Columbia, Maryland, Baseball Factory offers one-on-one and small group instruction to high school and youth players.