Pelicans polish new pitch this week for fans

The Myrtle Beach Pelicans have made a new pitch, to show another popular side to America’s game, with star female athletes taking the diamond.

Two National Pro Fastpitch softball league teams will play two games at TicketReturn.com Field at Pelicans Ballpark, 1251 21st Ave. N., Myrtle Beach. The Pennsylvania Rebellion, from Washington, southwest of Pittsburgh, will square off at 7:05 p.m. Thursday-Friday against the Scrap Yard Dawgs, from Conroe, Texas, in suburban Houston.

Kristin Call, the Pelicans’ senior director of marketing, has been “super excited and proud to help bring a professional women’s sporting event to the area.” She also said this is believed to mark the first time professional softball teams have played on the Grand Strand.

Call, who played softball from age 8-9 through two years of college, said helping prepare for these games resembles her work routine for the Pelicans, but that National Pro Fastpitch “attracts a whole different crowd.” Front office personnel from the Pelicans and Rebellion also stayed in touch since 2014 to iron out these dates to give National Pro Fastpitch some extra spotlight.

Officials from both visiting franchises – Steven Zavacky, general manager of the Rebellion; and Jade Hewitt, the Scrap Yard Dawgs’ media director – shared insight on teaming up for these games.

Question | What general differences will fans see with National Pro Fastpitch league play, compared with men’s minor and major league levels?

Zavacky | The base lines are 60 feet instead of 90; the distance from the pitcher to home plate is 43 feet instead of 60.5; the outfield fences are 225 feet all the way around; and the batter’s box dimensions are a little different. ... The biggest difference ... is the pace of play. National Pro Fastpitch is much faster; our goal is to play seven innings in two hours. When balls are hit on the third-base line and foul, for example, the left fielder will get it, throw it back in to the shortshop, to the pitcher, to throw the next pitch. The ball does not get tossed in the stands, and a new ball is not warmed up.

Q. | In this third year of Rebellion games, how many are played as travel stops, outside of host opponent venues?

Zavacky | This year, we have taken games to York, Lancaster and Allentown, Pa., and Salisbury, Md., then to Myrtle Beach.

Q. | With college softball games carried on national TV, how does this increased exposure for professional softball open more doors for aspiring athletes?

Zavacky | When we went to Allentown, we had 8,000 fans over two nights. Many of the people attending are young girls who play league softball or in recreational leagues. We named our team strategically, with Pennsylvania, instead of Pittsburgh or Washington. We’re looking to go other minor league parks across the state, to take this team around, to expose new markets for this sport. ...

The Women’s World Softball Championships are happening [through July 24] in British Columbia (www.surrey2016.com/live/index), and we have five Rebellion players there right now, representing several countries, including Canada and the United States.

Q. | Outside of this continent, where else has professional fastpitch become a force?

Zavacky | One of the other premier leagues is in Japan. There are a couple of players who play in Japan and in National Pro Fastpitch. Some women from our team also went to Europe to play.

Q. | With the youth day camps that teams’ coaches and players lead – including the sold-out clinic for this Thursday in Myrtle Beach – and college softball becoming part of regular national TV programming, what new horizons is professional softball conquering?

Zavacky | We try to have camps everywhere we go. You can have the games, but there’s no hands-on, close contact there. ... At the camps, children are learning from the best players in the world.

Q. | How far have the Scrap Yard Dawgs gone in their inaugural season for these special guest games in neutral sites?

Hewitt | We went to Kansas City, Kan., just about a week ago, and played for two nights against the USSSA Pride, from Kissimmee, Fla. That’s a great venue. The fans there are so supportive; they love to coming out to watch the games.

Q. | In your seeing this sport grow in popularity – locally, nationally and globally – in what ways is that confirmed in National Pro Fastpitch players interacting with fans, the reception and turnout at games, and in being role models for younger, impassioned girls ?

Hewitt | It’s amazing, and it’s one of the most widely played sports in the world. People and fans are hungry for it. They want to see the best players in the world competing against one another.

Many youth are now committing their career to playing softball, and they love being able to feel close to the players, with social media, and with being able to meet them after every National Pro Fastpitch game. Part of the league’s policy is to have 45-minute, postgame autograph sessions with fans. The players take pictures and hug little ones. ... Being able to watch an 8-year-old walk up to Scrap Yard Dawgs pitcher and former Olympian Monica Abbott and seeing their eyes light up is fantastic.

Q. | Looking ahead to playing in Myrtle Beach, what other excitement comes for women involved with this sport, on and off the field, especially with you doubling as the media director for the Dallas Charge?

Hewitt | Although the Pennsylvania Rebellion are down in the standings, that team is loaded with hitters, and all it takes for a team is to get hot on the back half of the season, and you’ll see changes in the standings. ...

Also, everyday, everywhere, we have a lot of fans who come to games that are not where are the teams are from, or they might not be familiar with the names of the players, but they get fired up watching the games. ...

We also want to make sure girls know there are opportunities out there in the sport of softball.

This story was originally published July 17, 2016 at 10:00 AM with the headline "Pelicans polish new pitch this week for fans."