Local youth softball team to play at MLB All-Star Weekend

One El Paso softball team was chosen to participate in the annual All-Star Youth Classic in this year’s MLB All-Star week in Miami, Florida.

The El Paso youth athletic association BASE Play RBI is one of the dozen organizations to participate in this youth classic that features 140 baseball and softball players between the ages of 11 and 12.

The El Paso team includes 12 sixth-grade girls form from Horizon City, Montana Vista and Clint. The team is one of the four softball teams in the U.S. to play in this year’s All-Star activities.

The athletic organization BASE Play RBI has been serving economically distressed communities in El Paso since 2014. The afterschool program is designed to encourage more people from these communities to play the sport.

“Our focus is to make sure we come into communities that are looking for resources in order for kids to play,” said the Vice President of Youth Programs for the MLB, David James.

In addition to these players playing in the youth events, they will also be attending All-Star Weekend events and will be rooming at the University of Miami.

The team seems very eager for the opportunity to showcase their skills and more at Miami.

“Oh the team is very excited,” said head coach Daniel Gonzalez. “They’re always talking about it. They’re always asking how many days left do we have to go to Miami. But they’re mainly more excited to play out there, showing off their community.”

The youth activities will start on Friday, July 7th and last till Monday, July 10.