AE Softball / Recruiting program / Player development

Measure. Plan. Train. Retest.

Every AE player is assessed with the same tools, gets a written plan built from her own numbers, and is retested on a schedule. Development isn't a feeling here. It's a number that moves.

4assessment tools

8week training blocks

6–8weeks between retests

How development works at AE

The same loop for every player, at every position.

1
Measure
Strength, power, swing, and pitch data collected with sensors and standard tests at the Athletic Edge facility.
2
Plan
Each report ends in targets and a development plan that names the one thing to fix first.
3
Train
An 8-week strength and power block runs alongside normal pitching and hitting work.
4
Retest
Same tests, same conditions. The retest decides what the next block emphasizes.

Sample Power Report Card showing a Power Index of 73 with targets for deadlift, single broad jump, triple broad jump and the next Power Index goal — Sample Power Report Card. Player name removed.

Bar chart comparing a player's physical engine scores with her game output as a share of college level — Physical engine vs. game output: where the room to grow is.

Tool 1 · Strength · Power · Efficiency

The AE Power Index

One number, out of 100, for how much athletic engine a player has for her size.

The Power Index is built from three tests: a trap bar deadlift, a single broad jump, and a triple broad jump. Each is scored against a college-ready target scaled to the player's own height and bodyweight, so a smaller athlete is measured fairly against a bigger one. We then set that engine score beside her game output — pitch velocity, bat speed, and overhand throw — to answer the question that matters: is she limited by strength and power, or by skill and mechanics?

Shows the single widest gap, so training time goes to the right place
Efficiency score: how much velocity she gets from the engine she has
A retest table that tells coaches what to emphasize next

Targets are AE working estimates and are tuned as team data comes in. They are not published standards.

Sample hitting report with Blast benchmarks for on-plane efficiency, early connection, connection at impact and peak bat speed — Sample Hitting Report from Blast Motion data. Player name removed.

Chart showing average on-plane efficiency falling as early connection angle increases — One finding from 1,379 swings: where the swing starts sets the plane.

Tool 2 · Bat speed · Swing plane · Connection

Hitting assessment with Blast Motion

A sensor on the knob of the bat records every swing in practice, not just the ones a coach happens to see.

Over a season that adds up to hundreds or thousands of swings per hitter. We turn that data into a report: typical and peak bat speed, how long the barrel stays on plane, how the bat and body are connected at launch and at contact, and how all of it changes between tee, soft toss, and machine. Results are compared with Blast's published softball ranges, and the report traces the biggest gap back to its cause.

Finds the lever: the one measurement that drives the others
Gives coaches cues that work, and flags cues that backfire
Turns the sensor into a scoreboard for practice reps

Sample pitch report with velocity and break targets for the rise and drop — Sample Pitch Report from a pitchLogic bullpen. Player name removed.

Table of speed, vertical break, side break, spin and reps for drop, rise and changeup — Every pitch type measured for speed, break, and spin.

Tool 3 · Velocity · Break · Spin

Pitching assessment with pitchLogic

A smart ball with sensors inside measures what the eye can't: how each pitch is really spinning.

In a single bullpen the ball records velocity, vertical and side break, backspin or topspin, wasted "bullet" spin, and arm slot on every pitch. The report sorts those pitches by what they did, not by what they were called, which often shows that a pitcher is throwing something different from what she thinks. Each pitcher gets velocity and break targets for her best pitches and a plan for getting there.

Identifies her true pitch mix and her most complete pitch
Sets measurable targets for velocity and movement
Gives catchers and coaches notes for calling her game

Strength and Power training protocol, Block 1: two gym days a week, one optional speed day, eight weeks then retest — Strength & Power Protocol, Block 1.

The three training sessions: Day A strength, Day B power, Day C optional speed — Three sessions: strength, power, and an optional speed day.

Tool 4 · The training block

The Strength & Power Protocol

An 8-week block that builds the engine while pitching and hitting work stays the same.

Two gym days a week and one optional speed day. Jumps and throws come first while the athlete is fresh, then a trap bar deadlift progression that adds weight only when every rep was fast and clean. Week 4 is an easy week, week 8 is the retest, and the results are scored on the Power Index so the player can see what the work bought her.

Speed and clean reps over heavy bars: a slow, grinding rep ends the set
A coach is present for every deadlift session
No heavy lifting the day before a game or a pitching day
Clear rules for when to add weight, hold, or stop

Why this matters for recruiting

College coaches recruit on numbers they trust. The measurables on an AE player's profile come from these assessments, tested at our facility under the same conditions every time, and her development plan shows a coach where she is headed, not just where she is.

It is step one of the AE Recruiting Program: know your profile before you contact a single coach.

See the recruiting program

About the samples on this page

The reports shown are real AE assessments with player names removed. Full reports go to the player, her family, and her coaches. They are not posted publicly.

Player profile pages carry only the headline measurables a family chooses to share with college coaches.

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Nov 28 and Dec 5 · 2–4 pm · Casa Grande Varsity Field, Petaluma.