Scrap Yard Fast Pitch

Last updated
Scrap Yard Fast Pitch
ScrapYardDawgs logo.png
Information
League National Pro Fastpitch (2016–2017)
Independent (2018–2020)
Location Conroe, Texas
Ballpark Scrapyard Softball Complex
Founded2015
Folded2020
League championships1 (2017)
General Manager Connie May
Website scrapyardsports.com
scrapyardfastpitch.com

The Scrap Yard Fast Pitch was an independent women's professional softball team based in Conroe, Texas, just north of Houston. Established in October 2015 as the Scrap Yard Dawgs, the team played in the National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) during the 2016 and 2017 seasons. The Dawgs were the first NPF team to be based in the Houston area since the Texas Thunder became the Rockford Thunder in the 2007 season. In 2017, the Dawgs won their first NPF title against Pride in the best of three game series.

Contents

After having its franchise terminated by the NPF, the team went independent under the name Scrap Yard Fast Pitch.

In June 2020, all eighteen of the team's players quit in protest of a tweet by the franchise owner. Days later, the team became "This Is Us" and continued their series against the USSSA Pride.

Although the team has since disbanded, the facilities are still maintained by Scrap Yard Sports, which also runs recreational softball and baseball leagues.

History

On October 23, 2015, NPF announced the Scrap Yards Dawgs as an expansion team for the 2016 season. [1] Kevin Shelton, also the general manager of the Dallas Charge, was introduced as the Dawgs' GM. [2]

On May 5, 2016, the Dawgs signed free agent Monica Abbott to a six-year contract, believed to be worth $1 million; the contract was believed to be the most lucrative paid by an individual American professional franchise to an active female athlete in any team sport. [3]

2017

For the 2017 season, the Dawgs hired Texas A&M associate head coach Gerry Glasco as their head coach. Glasco's assistants would be Oregon's Jimmy Kolaitis and Joe Guthrie of Bucknell. Glasco was head coach of the USSSA Pride in 2014. Kolaitis was an assistant coach for the Chicago Bandits in 2013. [4] The Dawgs finished second during the regular season and won the 2017 Cowles Cup Championship.

2018

On January 28, the Dawgs announced via press release they would no longer be affiliated with the NPF. The NPF terminated their franchise on January 29 citing that the team had violated several league operating rules and franchise requirements. [5] The team indicated they would continue as an independent team under the name Scrap Yard Fastpitch. [6]

2020

In June 2020, during the George Floyd protests and after the first game of a planned seven-game series, franchise owner Connie May tweeted a photo of players standing with hands on heart captioned "Everyone respecting the flag," a reference to the U.S. national anthem protests. May tagged President and protest critic Donald Trump in the tweet. All eighteen players quit the team. [7] The players vowed to never play for Scrap Yard again and formed a new team tentatively named This Is Us. [8] Scrapping together donated uniforms, the players returned to the field days later, defeating the USSSA Pride. [9] Coach Michael Steuerwald and several former Scrap Yard staffers remained with the new team. [8]

Team

General managers

Current roster

Scrap Yard Dawgs roster
Active roster
(YYYY = Final season of player contract)		Inactive rosterCoaches

Pitchers

Catchers


Infielders

Outfielders

Unsigned Draftees
(Year Team's Rights Expire)
Head Coach
Assistant Coaches
Legend
  • * Franchise Player Tag
  • (C) Captain
  • (A) Alternate captain
→ All NPF rosters

All-time head coaches

#NameTermRegular seasonPlayoffs
GCWLW%GCWLW%
1 Javier Vela, Tripp MacKay 2016 482919.604312.333
2 Gerry Glasco 2017 493118.633541.800

Season-by-season

Season records
SeasonWLTFinishPlayoff results
2016 291902nd place National Pro FastpitchLost to Chicago Bandits 2-games-to-1 in NPF Semifinals
2017 311802nd place National Pro FastpitchWon NPF Championship 2-games-to-1 over USSSA Pride, Defeated Akron Racers 2-games-to-0 in NPF Semifinals
Totals60370

Draft history

NPF Draft

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Pro Fastpitch</span> American professional womens softball league

National Pro Fastpitch (NPF), formerly the Women's Pro Softball League (WPSL), was a professional women's softball league in the United States. The teams battled for the Cowles Cup.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chicago Bandits</span> Former womens professional softball team

The Chicago Bandits were a women's professional softball team based in Rosemont, Illinois. Since the 2005 season, they have played as a member of National Pro Fastpitch (NPF). The Bandits won the 2008 NPF championship, defeating the Washington Glory in the final game of the championship series. The team won their second NPF championship following the 2011 season when they won the championship series two games to none over the USSSA Pride. Following the 2015 season the team won its third NPF championship defeating the USSSA Pride two games to none. They played their home games at Parkway Bank Sports Complex in Rosemont, Illinois. The team folded in 2021 when the NPF disbanded.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Texas Charge</span> Womens professional softball team

The Texas Charge were a women's professional softball team based in San Marcos, Texas. The team began play as the Dallas Charge as a member of National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) with a game on June 3, 2015. They were initially headquartered in the Dallas–Fort Worth, Texas area, with most home games at The Ballfields at Craig Ranch.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dallas Escobedo</span> American softball player and coach

Dallas Jade Escobedo is a Mexican-American, former collegiate All-American, Olympian, professional softball pitcher and coach. She played college softball for Arizona State in the from 2011 to 2014, where she led them to the 2011 Women's College World Series title and ranks in several pitching categories for both institutions. She is currently the pitching coach at Cal State Fullerton.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2015 NPF Draft</span>

The 2015 NPF College Draft is the twelfth annual collegiate draft for NPF, and was held on Wednesday, April 1, 2015, 5:30 pm CST at the CMA Theater in the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville, Tennessee. Draft order was determined by regular season standings from 2014, but subsequent trades and transactions altered the overall draft order. The draft was broadcast live on CBS Sports Network.

The 2015 National Pro Fastpitch season was the 12th season of professional softball under the name National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) for the only professional women's softball league in the United States. From 1997 to 2002, NPF operated under the names Women's Pro Fastpitch (WPF) and Women's Pro Softball League (WPSL). Each year, the playoff teams battle for the Cowles Cup.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2016 NPF Draft</span>

National Pro Fastpitch held two drafts before the 2016 season:

The 2012 National Pro Fastpitch season was the ninth season of professional softball under the name National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) for the only professional women's softball league in the United States. From 1997 to 2002, NPF operated under the names Women's Pro Fastpitch (WPF) and Women's Pro Softball League (WPSL). The 2012 season is especially notable because due to weather and scheduling issues, the NPF Championship Series was not completed and no Cowles Cup champion was named.

The 2010 National Pro Fastpitch season was the seventh season of professional softball under the name National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) for the only professional women's fastpitch softball league in the United States. From 1997 to 2002, NPF operated under the names Women's Pro Fastpitch (WPF) and Women's Pro Softball League (WPSL). Each year, the playoff teams battle for the Cowles Cup.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2017 NPF Draft</span>

The 2017 NPF College Draft is the 14th annual collegiate draft for National Pro Fastpitch. It took place April 24, 2017 7:00 CT in Nashville, Tennessee at Acme Feed & Seed, a downtown entertainment venue. It was available for internet viewing via NPFTV, the league's streaming platform. The first selection was Jessica Burroughs of Florida State, picked by the USSSA Pride.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2012 NPF Draft</span>

The 2012 NPF Draft is the ninth annual NPF Draft. It was held March 7, 2012, 5:00 PM CST in Memphis, TN at the Peabody Hotel for the 2012 season. It was streamed live on the NPF's website. The first selection was LSU's Brittany Mack, picked by the USSSA Pride. Athletes are not allowed by the NCAA to sign professional contracts until their collegiate seasons have ended.

The 2016 National Pro Fastpitch season was the 13th season of professional softball under the name National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) for the only professional women's softball league in the United States. From 1997 to 2002, NPF operated under the names Women's Pro Fastpitch (WPF) and Women's Pro Softball League (WPSL). Each year, the playoff teams battle for the Cowles Cup.

The following is a list 2016 NPF transactions that have occurred in the National Pro Fastpitch softball league since the completion of the 2015 season and during the 2016 season. It lists which team each player has been traded to, signed by, or claimed by, and for which player(s) or draft pick (s), if applicable. Players who have retired are also listed. Per Commissioner Cheri Kempf's tweet, NPF contracts expire in February, therefore the extension of a contract "through 2018" means the player is only contracted to play through the 2017 season, with the contract expiring the following February. "Thru 2018 season" therefore would mean a contract that expires in February 2019, covering only games played in 2018.

The 2017 National Pro Fastpitch season was the 14th season of professional softball under the name National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) for the only professional women's softball league in the United States. From 1997 to 2002, NPF operated under the names Women's Pro Fastpitch (WPF) and Women's Pro Softball League (WPSL). Each year, the playoff teams battle for the Cowles Cup.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">USSSA Pride</span> American softball team

The USSSA Pride is a professional softball team based in Viera, Florida and a former member of Women's Professional Fastpitch (WPF). Founded in 2009, they previously played in National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) from 2009 to 2019. They play their home games at USSSA Space Coast Complex.

Delanie Rai Gourley is an American softball pitcher for the USSSA Pride of National Pro Fastpitch. A member of the United States women's national softball team, Gourley played college softball at the University of Florida.

The 2018 National Pro Fastpitch season was the 15th season of professional softball under the name National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) for the only professional women's softball league in the United States. From 1997 to 2002, NPF operated under the names Women's Pro Fastpitch (WPF) and Women's Pro Softball League (WPSL). Each year, the playoff teams battle for the Cowles Cup.

Gerald Dean Glasco Jr. is an American college softball coach who is currently head coach at Texas Tech and the Smash It Sports Vipers of the Women's Professional Fastpitch (WPF). Previously, Glasco was a high school softball coach, an assistant at Georgia and Texas A&M, and head coach for the USSSA Pride and Scrap Yard Dawgs of the National Pro Fastpitch (NPF).

Madison Shipman is an American former professional softball player. She played college softball at Tennessee.

Brittany Marya Cervantes is an American softball catcher and coach of Mexican descent, and is currently the director of softball operations for Kentucky. She represented Mexico at the 2020 Summer Olympics.

References

  1. ↑ "NPF adds sixth team, Houston". Observer–Reporter . Washington, Pennsylvania. October 23, 2015. Retrieved December 11, 2015. The National Pro Fastpitch added an expansion team for the 2016 season. The new team will be known as the Scrap Yard Dawgs and will be based in Conroe, Texas, just north of Houston.
  2. ↑ "NPF announces Scrap Yard Dawgs as Newest Expansion Team". ScrapYardDawgs.com. October 23, 2015. Retrieved November 1, 2015.
  3. ↑ Graham Hays (May 5, 2016). "Monica Abbott wants change after signing $1 million contract with NPF expansion team". espnW.com. Retrieved May 5, 2016.
  4. ↑ Kayla Lombardo (October 17, 2016). "Scrap Yard Dawgs set coaching staff for second NPF season". Excelle Sports. Archived from the original on October 21, 2016. Retrieved October 20, 2016.
  5. ↑ "National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) Terminates Houston-Based Scrap Yard Dawgs". NPF. Archived from the original on February 1, 2018. Retrieved January 31, 2018.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  6. ↑ Chez Sievers (January 28, 2018). "Scrap Yard Dawgs Announce They Are Leaving NPF". FloSoftball.com. Retrieved January 29, 2018.
  7. ↑ Weiner, Natalie (2020-06-24). "A Softball Team's Tweet to Trump Leads Players to Quit Mid-Series". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2020-06-25.
  8. 1 2 Hays, Graham (June 26, 2020). "Softball players who protested GM start new team". ESPN.
  9. ↑ @storm_fl (June 27, 2020). "This Is Us win 3-1 over USSSA Pride!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
Achievements
Preceded by Cowles Cup NPF Champions
Scrap Yard Dawgs
2017 		Succeeded by
incumbent
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.