How MLB Youth Academies are making Breakthrough Series a developmental pipeline

VERO BEACH, Fla. -- For Major Leaguers, the sights and sounds of professional baseball are part of everyday life.

But not long ago, it was all a dream -- the same one shared by kids in the stands with ballpark lights shimmering in their eyes.

Helping make that dream feel attainable is one reason MLB Youth Academies are special for players like Theodore Fisher of the Kansas City Youth Academy and Dominik Harper of the Texas Rangers Youth Academy, both of whom are participating in this year's Breakthrough Series.

Founded in 2006 in Compton, Calif., MLB's Youth Academy network has expanded to 10 locations across the country and in Puerto Rico. The not-for-profit initiative is dedicated to growing the game, providing safe recreational opportunities and preparing high school players for future opportunities in baseball and softball.

The Breakthrough Series, established two years later in collaboration with USA Baseball, builds on that foundation. With 80 participants from the 2027-28 graduating classes, the program focuses on developing players in all aspects of the game while providing a platform for scouts and college coaches to evaluate talent.

“The MLB Youth Academies are definitely a pipeline, a feeder into our development programs,” MLB Senior Vice President of Baseball Development Del Matthews said. “[It] kind of creates that continuity between the showcase and what goes on day to day back home. All the academies have been great about recommending players, and we're excited to host a few of them here, and hopefully again when we do our additional events.”

More than 250 Breakthrough Series participants have gone on to be drafted. For players like Fisher and Harper, that track record serves as a source of inspiration and confidence.

Being at the Jackie Robinson Training Complex also offers a glimpse into what life in professional baseball could one day look like.

“It inspires me by looking up to those guys and knowing that they came through the same organization and program,” Fisher said. “So I can go there and just see what they've done and ask all the coaches that have been there [about them].”

That perspective is why there is nothing Fisher would rather do than be at the academy every day in Kansas City.

“There's people there that can help you with anything, and it's free, you know?” Fisher said. “You have cages, you have a field, so the best part about it is just being able to go there and work with everybody.”

Harper sees a similar impact more than 500 miles south in West Dallas.

“That inspires me a lot, because it shows that somebody else who has been here before has a path that I can also have,” Harper said.

Beyond baseball development, both players said the relationships they have built through the academy and the lessons they have been taught on a personal level have been just as impactful.

“I'm thinking about just all the possibilities that are available through baseball,” Harper said. “I feel like I meet so many new people and make so many more connections. It sets me apart as a person because they taught me a lot about how to treat other people and just how to hone my own abilities, especially on the field.”

That foundation helped ease the transition into the Breakthrough Series, where many of the same fundamentals are emphasized at the academies.

“Coming up through the [academy] has helped me … a lot [with] my confidence,” Fisher said. “Working with the coaches there has helped me tremendously with my fielding and my pitching, so I know whenever I come down here I'm ready to just perform and get after it.”

The opportunity to also work alongside new coaches and players in Vero Beach is one of the reasons both athletes wanted to attend the event, viewing it as another step toward their long-term goals in the game.

Just as important, they hope to bring those experiences back home.

“I will go back and tell the Youth Academy that just having an open mind about everything and being able to contribute your way into the game is always as much as it comes,” Harper said.

“Experience … all the people down there [would] love to know how it goes,” Fisher said. “So I [am going to go] down there telling them stories and how I did.”

In many ways, that's how the cycle continues with them having the opportunity to set an example for younger players back home, which is something both players proudly embrace.

“I mean, that just inspires me even more to go play and be the best that I possibly can to show those at home,” Harper said. “That we can do it, too.”