Dodgers, Nomar introduce new youth academy

LOS ANGELES -- Dodgers ownership has partnered with six-time All-Star Nomar Garciaparra in a venture designed to provide a support system to young athletes, their coaches and leagues.
Along with Washington state-based former MLB prospect Aaron Trolia, E|L1 will provide elite baseball instruction for the players by former professional athletes, immersive training for coaches and managers and educational seminars for parents and guardians. Leagues and teams will have access to state-of-the-art technology.
In Los Angeles, the Garciaparra Family's GBG Training Academy in Redondo Beach, Calif., will be the first Dodgers Training Academy, serving all skill levels with accommodations for players and families unable to afford the high price of other academies.
"E|L1 is a player-first organization that values personal development just as much as training and winning, and believes that youth of all ages and skill levels should have greater access to the game," said Garciaparra, the current Dodgers broadcaster who founded GBG with his brother, Michael, and partners, Paul Rappoli and Trolia to develop youth and high school players.
"As a former youth athlete and parent, I know the industry is broken. We are launching E|L1 to help kids learn for those who've lived it at the highest levels, and set a new standard for excellence in instruction." 
E|L1 will also power Trolia's existing facilities and programs in Washington State -- Northwest Prospects Academy (NPA), 5 Tool Academy, RISE Football, and Softball University -- which will also be backed by Dodgers ownership resources.
"We're on a mission to elevate youth through sport," said Trolia. "Our vision has always been to serve the community using sport as the vehicle. We will provide the highest level of instruction, taught by former professional players who have been trained to teach their skillsets, emphasizing the fundamental principles of the game for both boys and girls. E|L1 will focus on both coaching and instruction, furthering players' physical skills while supporting them mentally and emotionally. E|L1 will also be the resource center to consistently train, support and develop coaches, from youth leagues to travel organizations and everything in between. Learn from those who lived it!"
"We've been carefully searching for the right investment in youth sports for years," said Tucker Kain, Dodgers CFO and Managing Partner of Elysian Park Ventures. "With E|L1, we have found a model that works and layered in powerful new elements that no one else can. With the backing of the Dodgers brand, its instructional expertise and influence, and the emerging technologies we have invested in through Elysian Park Ventures, we believe that E|L1 can thrive here in L.A. and will have a profound impact on baseball and softball across the country."
Southern California is also home to the MLB Youth Academy in Compton, which offers free yearlong baseball and softball instruction as well as educational and sports-related vocational programming. The first MLB Youth Academy, opening in 2006, the Compton facility is part of a larger network, which includes MLB Youth Academies in Cincinnati, Dallas, Gurabo (Puerto Rico), Houston, Kansas City, New Orleans, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C. Others are in development in Chicago, New York and San Francisco.