Nike RBI Southwest baseball and softball Regional tournaments underway at Rangers Youth Academy

Major League Baseball’s Nike RBI Southwest Regional Tournament started this morning, Friday, July 21, as teams compete for their spot in the Nike RBI World Series in August.

Nike RBI All-Star teams from Texas, Arkansas, Colorado and Louisiana will compete in two days of pool play at the Texas Rangers Youth Academy and DISD’s Higgins Baseball Field, with the top two teams in each division advancing to Sunday’s championship games.

The Texas Rangers Youth Academy is represented by teams in all three divisions: 15U junior baseball, 18U senior baseball and 18U softball.

The Rangers Nike RBI softball and junior baseball teams opened the tournament with their first pool play games at 8 a.m., Friday.

The junior baseball team beat Louisiana, 15-0, in three innings, with pitchers Santos Salinas and Nathan Ortega throwing a combined no-hitter.

The Rangers Nike RBI softball team fell, 10-1, to their regional rivals, the Houston Astros, and will look to bounce back in their next matchup against NOLA.

Youth Academy college signing day & graduation ceremony at Globe Life Field

The Texas Rangers Youth Academy will hold its annual signing day ceremony for athletes continuing their playing careers at the collegiate level at 10 a.m., on Monday, July 24, at Globe Life Field.

The baseball and softball signees will be joined on the field by their families as they put pen to paper and sign their National Letters of Intent, making their college commitments official.

This year, in addition to the NLI signing ceremony, the Rangers will hold a graduation ceremony for Academy athletes who concluded their high school playing careers and received their diplomas in May.

The 2023 graduates, who have attended year-round programming or participated in the Rangers Nike RBI league, will wear their high school caps and gowns and be presented with Amazon gift cards and custom baseball cards highlighting their Youth Academy accomplishments.

Patrick Ellison, Nicholas Smith, Austin Phillips invited to Hank Aaron Invitational

Three Texas Rangers Youth Academy athletes - Patrick Ellison, Nicholas Smith and Austin Phillips - were selected to attend Major League Baseball’s Hank Aaron Invitational in Vero Beach, Fla.

Ellison and Smith are participating in the first week of the event for athletes in the 2026-27 graduating classes from July 18-23. Phillips will participate next week from July 23-28 for athletes in the 2024-25 graduating classes.

Roughly 250 baseball players will participate in the two-week invitational operated by MLB, the MLB Players Association and USA Baseball.

Participants will receive elite-level training from top baseball coaches, ultimately working to create opportunities for high school-age players with diverse backgrounds to reach the next levels of the game.

Jennie Finch pitching tour

MLB Youth Softball Ambassador and two-time Olympic medalist Jennie Finch visited the Texas Rangers Youth Academy on Wednesday, July 19, to offer top-level instruction to the Academy’s best pitchers and catchers.

The former professional player will host eight clinics for young players at MLB Youth Academies across the U.S. as part of her new Jennie Finch Pitching Tour.

During the two-hour clinic, Finch offered valuable mental skills advice, helped pitchers fine-tune wind-up mechanics, spin, power and concluded the event with photos and autographs for the participants.