Hello softball world!

I really appreciate the tremendous support Line Drive Softball and I have received since our launch a week ago Friday. It’s been great to connect with many of you again and to hear your stories and get your updates!

We’re continuing to hit our stride and have some exciting things happening now, this week and in the weeks to come!

Here’s just a sample…

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Final Week of 2029 Line Drive Hot 100

This week wraps up the initial 2029 Line Drive Hot 100 and this is a very deep and talented class, as many coaches across the nation have told me.

The top of the class is talent-loaded and you will see that when we release the Top 10 player rankings this Friday.

Here’s the schedule for those rankings already published and for the rest of the week:

• #s 101-91 (April 8, 2024)
• #s 90-81 (April 9, 2024)
• #s 80-71 (April 10, 2024)
• #s 70-61 (April 11, 2024)
• #s 60-51 (April 12, 2024)
• #s 50-41 (April 15, 2024)
• #s 40-31 (April 16, 2024)
• #s 30-21 (April 17, 2024)
• #s 20-11 (April 18, 2024)
• #s 10-1 (April 19, 2024)

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2028 Line Drive Hot 100 Nominations Now Open

In case you missed our post yesterday, the 2028 Line Drive Hot 100 is now on the clock.

As of this morning you can fill out Player Nominations for the 2028 class. The Nomination Process will close on May 13, 2024 and the 2028 Rankings will begin on May 20, 2024.

Click HERE to read the article and Click HERE to go straight to the nomination page.

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Line Drive Softball National High School Rankings Start This Week

Longtime friend and work colleague Mark Tennis – the best I’ve ever seen in my 30-plus years of compiling high school rankings – will be working with Line Drive Softball (LDS) starting this week.

Click HERE to see the article published last week on this big news.

Mark’s knowledge of high school sports is unparalleled and I’m very excited to work with him again!

You won’t want to miss his in-depth coverage that Mark provides and will only be available here on Line Drive Softball.

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Carlos Arias Joins Line Drive Softball

Finally, I’m excited to tell the softball world that Carlos Arias is on our team!

Carlos is an expert on all things club/travel ball and will be publishing his in-depth columns Monday through Friday titled The Last Pitch.

Click HERE to see the first one, which was published earlier today.

Based in Southern California, this series will feature player profiles as well as everything on and off the field related to the travel ball world including news, notes and fun sections like the “Hype Song of the Day.”

And if you don’t know Carlos and what he brings to Line Drive Softball, here’s his bio to show he also has decades of experience covering prep sports including fastpitch softball:

Carlos Arias bio

Carlos Arias is a well-known and highly respected national sportswriter, who has been covering high school sports, boxing and MMA since 1992.

Arias has worked at multiple media organizations including the Orange County Register, Student Sports, Rivals, ESPN and Extra Inning Softball, which was co-founded in 2018 by current Line Drive Softball Executive Editor Brentt Eads.

He has been on the softball beat for the last three decades and has been an expert in club and high softball for the past 20 years.

Among his many highly regarded accomplishments are ranking travel ball teams and producing the Inside Pitch series spotlighting top teams, players and coaches along with breaking the latest news in fastpitch softball.

Arias was born and raised in Orange County in Southern California and currently lives in Fresno, California.

Brentt Eads/Line Drive Softball