Future Stars Series Dallas Super Regional recap: Texas Rangers upperclassmen

Last weekend, the Texas Rangers Youth Academy was a host site for the New Balance Future Stars Series Dallas Super Regional. The two-day round-robin tournament brought together top teams across the Metroplex to compete in the upperclassmen and underclassmen divisions.

The Texas Rangers Youth Academy had teams competing in both divisions of the tournament and played a combined eight games this weekend.

The Rangers Upperclassmen finished the weekend 2-2. Ely Anderson was player of the weekend for the team finishing with the best batting average on the roster at .333, with four runs scored and two stolen bases.

The Rangers opened the weekend with an 8-7 win over Patriots Clements in game one. Top offensive performers for the Rangers included Ajani Lyons (2-3, 2B), Anderson (3-3, 3B, 2R) and Christian Gray (1-1, 2BB, 3B). On the bump, Rangers pitchers Nik Smith and Wesley Grant combined for 15 strikeouts over the seven-inning game.

In their second game against LBK, the Rangers Upperclassmen secured the win with a final score of 9-7. John Sanchez was the winning pitcher for the Rangers, striking out five batters in his outing. As a whole, the team worked nine walks from the opposing pitcher and stole four bases. David Hogg went 2-3, 2B, 3B, SB, R, at the plate, Anderson went 1-3, 2R and Steven Ramos was 1-2, 2 BB. 

On day two, the Ranges Upperclassmen lost 7-1 to opponent GPS Puffer. The Rangers' offense struggled to get started, but Nik Smith (1-2, BB) and Ajani Lyons (1-3) each had solid performances at the plate.

In the fourth and final game of the weekend, the Rangers were edged out by Patriots Clary 3-2. David Hogg had a strong performance on the mound but was unable to limit their offensive production enough to get the win. Smith and Lyons scored the team's only runs in game four, which included a solo home run from Lyons.

Future Stars Series Dallas Super Regional Recap: Texas Rangers underclassmen

The Texas Rangers Youth Academy’s underclassmen team finished the weekend even, with two wins and two losses.

Juan Aranda was player of the weekend for the Rangers underclassmen team, securing a win on the mound in their game against the Patriots Green with four strikeouts in 4IP. On offense, Aranda went 5-11 over the weekend, posting the team’s best batting average at .455.

In the tournament opener against GPS Perez, the Rangers fell short in a 2-1 loss. Ian Martinez went 1-2 with a double, Amaad Garret went 1-1 before exiting the game early due to injury, Maddox Johnson was 1-2 and Santos Salinas was credited with scoring the Rangers’ lone run.

The team finished the first day of play with a 9-7 win over TX Baseball. The Rangers scored nine runs on six hits, with four runs in the second inning and five in the fourth. Isaac Casas was 1-2, 2B, 2BB, 2R, Mike Davis Jr. went 1-3, 2B, Aranda finished the game 2-3, 2R, Emiliano Maldonado was 2-3 and reached base safely in all three at-bats.

The Rangers opened day two against Patriots Green, who they beat 7-4. Aaron Grant was a perfect 3-3 at the plate with 2 2B, 2R, Casas went 2-3, R, and Aranda went 2-4, R. On the mound, Aranda opened the game, pitching four innings with four strikeouts, and Christian Salazar got the save in his relief appearance.

In their last game of the weekend, the Rangers again faced GPS Perez and fell 6-0 after struggling to get their bats going. Aranda had the team’s only hit in the seventh inning.

Coach Spotlight: Kenneth Hollingsworth

Kenneth Hollingsworth started coaching softball when his daughter first joined the sport. With no expectations beyond making new friends, it became a long journey they would begin together. 

Hollingsworth was one of those dads who jumped at the chance to coach his child's team. Eventually, his volunteer youth softball coaching job snowballed into a two-decade coaching career, mostly spent alongside his daughter, at the select and travel team level. 

After years of hard work and hours spent practicing in their backyard, Hollingsworth finally saw his daughter accomplish her dreams and begin her collegiate softball career at the University of Missouri.

With this next chapter came new beginnings for the entire family.

Working at his full-time job as a Dallas County firefighter, Hollingsworth had driven by the Texas Rangers Youth Academy on Bickers Street and North Hampton Road for years. His curiosity was piqued and he had to know what this place was and what they did

After going out on a limb, popping in to get more info and eventually applying to coach at the Academy, Hollingsworth officially joined the staff in 2021.

Now in his second year at the Texas Rangers Youth Academy, Hollingsworth has coached it all, from year-round softball programming and the RBI summer league to the Negro Leagues Museum Invitational team in Kansas City.

When coaching, the most important moments for Hollingsworth are “seeing the lightbulb come on” for his athletes. “When you teach somebody something and then it comes out in them, it's the best feeling in the whole world,” he said as he fought off goosebumps just thinking about moments like those.

This summer was his first coaching a junior softball team in the Rangers’ Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities (RBI) League. “That experience was completely different than what I had been coaching,” he said when thinking back on his time coaching athletes in the Glory Atkins family of select and travel teams. “We had a girl that had never played in a game before she was on my team. In her very first at-bat, she got a hit and you could see the big smile on her face. That's why I do this.”

At the Youth Academy, Hollingsworth has found that he has more time to focus on each player and simply teach the game of softball, which can sometimes be muddled in the select and travel softball world. He’s thankful for opportunities to teach athletes of all ages and skill levels and lend his help in all aspects of the game, from how to swing a bat to advice on the college recruiting process.  

“My favorite group to coach is 18U,” he said. “I feel like I can impact them the most because my last coaching gig was 18U select. [At Youth Academy programming], some of the girls come from select squads to hone their skills, and I know there are some that can't play select for financial reasons. That makes it even more impactful for me because we're able to give these athletes tools that they wouldn’t otherwise have access to, something my daughter never had to experience.”

In his role as a coach and mentor at the Academy, Hollingsworth prioritizes building relationships with his athletes, something he’s always remembered from his high school varsity basketball days with Coach Koontz.

“I'm a relationship-focused coach,” he said. “And especially coaching girls, I know they have to feel good to play good, so I try to tap into that.” Hollingsworth knows creating a trusting relationship with his athletes is a key to their success, and how he builds those relationships is centered around a fun atmosphere

“I’m usually just trying to make them laugh. If I can make them laugh, then I’ve got them,” he said. “I try to get them the smile a little bit and try to mess with them a little bit. And, being a fireman, we do that all the time at the station, so if I can get them to laugh, I can build [their trust].”

When Hollingsworth first started his coaching job at the Rangers Youth Academy, another member of his family got her first softball experience— his younger daughter, Eden. The Youth Academy has become a new beginning for himself and Eden, who has already taken the world by storm in her early softball career, winning the Pitch, Hit & Run Regional Championship in the 8U softball division a few weeks ago.

As a coach and parent at the Texas Rangers Youth Academy, Hollingsworth can’t stress enough how many opportunities open for athletes who attend.

“We just came back from Kansas City with the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum Invitational,” he said. “Who gets to do that?

“The opportunity is limitless, and the experience of being around coaches that have been in the sport, played the sport and there's a wealth of knowledge here that athletes can't always get in the select world.”

Hollingsworth continued singing the praises of the Rangers Youth Academy staff, which he now rounds out with his 25-plus-years of experience coaching softball.