Teal Hamman just keeps getting better and better… and college coaches across the country are noticing.

Two years ago, we had the Northern California player — who now competes for the Firecrackers – Leles/Veasey 18U team — ranked at No. 37 in the 2028 HOT 100 and last year the pitcher/outfielder jumped all the way into the Top 10 after showing her great all-around athleticism which has translated to impressive successes on the softball field.

Here’s how her bio read when published in mid-2025:

T-9—Teal Hamman, P, Firecrackers – Leles/Yoder 2028
Teal is a dominant 5-tool, true multi-sport athlete who is big, strong, and fast with high softball IQ and a competitive drive to be the best that is unmatched.  One opposing coach stated, “Teal exudes a commanding presence that captures the attention of players and coaches alike. When Teal steps into the box or on the mound, our team has to make adjustments.” From Chico, Calif., the 2028 grad is already attracting attention from major D-1 programs due to her all-around athleticism and training regimen. Batting cleanup for the Firecrackers organization, Teal is skilled enough to hit deep into the gaps or lay down a sweet bunt and her base running skills are a cut above the rest. Pitching against some elite teams she can keep them off balance with the complete accuracy of hitting her spots with 6 different pitches. When she isn’t pitching, she is playing shortstop at an elite level with exceptional awareness and the ability to make split-second decisions. Teal has been invited to attend Rosetta Canyon ODM due to her outstanding Metric scores. She hit .485 last year and in a major tournament last Fall she batted .778.

We first discovered Teal’s potential when we profiled her in an article titled: Future Star Teal Hamman: This Five-Sport 2028 Athlete Decides Softball Will Be Her No. 1 published on Dec. 16, 2024.

When we wrote that the soon-to-be junior at Pleasant Valley (Chico, Calif.) High was proficient in five sports, we weren’t exaggerating: Teal has competed at elite levels in basketball, volleyball, and softball while previously participating in competitive swimming and golf.

As her softball goals have grown, she recently made the difficult decision to step away from swimming and golf to dedicate more time to developing as a softball player.

Still, her multi-sport background has helped her develop athleticism, coordination, mental toughness, coachability, and the ability to perform under pressure.

Now, just weeks away from Sept. 1 and the kickoff of the recruiting period for 2028’s, Teal shares with our Line Drive Media audience what she’s been doing this summer to get ready for this sure-to-be busy time.

First, though, she emphasizes how important her parents, Kory and Bridget Hamman, have been in supporting and traveling with her this summer as Teal has gone coast to coast in her softball exploits.

“My parents joined me on these trips,” she explains, “and they made sure that we also have fun too.”

“It wasn’t 100 percent softball as my parents are pretty adventurous and want me to be a kid and experience things all over the USA: white water rafting, zip lining, national parks and anything cool or unique for the area.”

“My dad even dragged us 20 miles out of the way one time to see the world’s largest collection of cement corn statues which was 109 ears of corn that stand eight feet tall (ugh)!”

“Or another hour in a different direction to see the actual gym from the high school in the movie Hoosiers.”

An only child, Teal admits it’s been a blast having her parents right beside her as she’s explored the country in a what she terms as a “crazy softball summer” and says:

“I wouldn’t have it any other way!”

*****

A Summer on the Road Visiting 10 States, 23 Colleges, 14 Camps, Five Showcase/National Tournaments & Experiencing Way Too Many Airport Delays!

If someone had told me at the beginning of summer that it would include:

• traveling to 10 states,
• playing in five large showcase tournaments,
• attending 14 college prospect camps,
• touring 23 college campuses,
• meeting a ton of amazing softball players and coaches,
• working out in random hotel gyms,
• sitting on airport runways for hours sometimes, and
• basically living out of a suitcase…

…. I probably would have said” “That sounds exhausting!” And I would have been right. 

It was exhausting… BUT I WOULD DO IT ALL OVER AGAIN!!!

Being a 2028 grad who plays shortstop and pitches for my Firecrackers Leles/Veasey travel ball team and a three-sport athlete in a large California high school with a 3.87 GPA, I am used to being busy year-round… but this was another level.  

… AND I LOVED EVERY MINUTE OF IT!!!

My crazy softball summer basically started on the last day of high school.  I actually had to skip the last day of school to get to my first tournament in Southern California.

Sorry, high school, but softball called!

And from there, we pretty much just kept going all summer long.  

My dad and I flew down to SoCal since there was a camp and my mom had to work that day, so she had to make the seven hour drive with our one-year-old chocolate Lab, Oakley, who goes on many crazy softball adventures with me.

Oakley is our loveable softball dog and honestly might have had the best travel schedule of all of us. She loves getting petted and taking treats from strangers and thinks every softball field is basically her personal playground.

*****

So Many States; So Very Different Climates

This summer alone I have traveled to Colorado, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Ohio, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Florida and California (NorCal and SoCal) and let me tell you—the weather is VERY different depending on where you are.  

Being a Cali girl, you get used to the dry 105-to-110 degrees and, with plenty of sunscreen and water, you are good to go.  

Then as we moved across the USA, we experienced Colorado Rocky Mountain weather, where it’s cloudy one second and then lightening and rainy the next.  Lesson learned: when you leave the hotel and its 90 degrees outside, you better not forget your umbrella.

So crazy!!!

As we traveled further east in the Midwest region, humidity starts coming into play and you have to bring out the towel and rosin bag while pitching…. maybe two of them.  A lot more turf fields than I am used to which gets hot enough that your feet start burning.

Finally, we made it to the East Coast and it’s basically like walking into a sauna while wearing softball pants.  

The humidity is so high, you can literally feel the air sticking to you.  At one point, I felt like I needed a different softball uniform for every climate zone in the country, but as a softball player, no worries… you just take it like it comes and learn to adapt

We also got to experience some pretty crazy weather with lightening and windstorms along the way.  

We had flight delays, sat on airport tarmacs for HOURS, had medical emergencies with an older gentleman having a heart-attack in flight (don’t worry, we landed safely and medics took care of him), dealt with storms at games and had those moments where you’re looking at the weather app thinking, “Is this game actually going to happen?”

Somehow, it always worked out.

There were also rental car breakdowns and we found ourselves in hotel rooms in some pretty questionable areas (thanks a lot, Priceline). We also spent more time in airports than I ever wanted to or thought I would.

I have also learned that airport food is expensive, working hotel ice machines are never on your floor (or are empty if they are) and you must make sure your phone is charged for those always important TikTok videos.

Also important: you need to ALWAYS know where the closest laudromat is for those late-night laundry sessions.

*****

Great Competition

Attending five showcase/national tournaments is one of the coolest parts of playing in these tournaments as is getting to play against some very competitive teams from around the country.

 But another huge part is the people you get to meet.

I’ve met so many girls this summer who come from completely different parts of the country, from different schools, different backgrounds and different softball programs.

And they are all there for the same reason: they love softball and want to play at the next level, just like I do.

I have made friends with girls from places that are on teams that I played against and friends with college players at camps that I probably wouldn’t have met otherwise.

Some girls I only see for a tournament or camp, but we still end up following each other, talking about softball and cheering each other on.  

It’s pretty cool to realize that you can meet someone for the first time in a hotel lobby or at a softball field in another state and by the end of the weekend you’re hanging out like you’ve known each other forever.  

Softball definitely makes the country feel smaller.

*****

The College Tour Adventure

Another huge part of my crazy summer has been visiting colleges since I am a 2028 grad and it’s that time.  

I have been to a lot of college campuses throughout the years, but this summer alone, I toured 23 different college campuses.  

At this point, I think my parents and I could probably start our own college tour company!  

We’ve seen huge campuses, small campuses, old buildings, brand-new facilities, crazy-good softball fields and everything in between.

And every school has its own personality, which is pretty neat to see, too.

This summer alone I was fortunate enough to visit—in no particular order–the University of Michigan, Northwestern, Indiana, Central Florida, Clemson, North Carolina State, Duke, Michigan State, Ohio State, South Florida, Georgia, Stanford, Florida State, Notre Dame, Georgia Tech, Purdue, Florida, UNC – Charlotte, North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Pacific, Colorado State, San Diego State, UC San Diego and the University of San Diego.

*** Be sure to scroll down to the bottom of the article to see several more campuses Teal & her parents visited!

Some campuses felt really busy and some were more relaxed. Some were huge and you could probably get your daily 10,000 steps just walking to class, while others felt much smaller and more personal.  

We wanted to actually see these places instead of just looking at pictures online.  My parents and I walked around the campuses, checked out the softball facilities and tried to imagine what it would really be like to live there for four years… actually five now.

And, since we are very committed to our softball research, we had to figure out how to sneak onto every single softball field and many football fields (but that’s our little secret)! 

Every school had something unique about it and we enjoyed them all.

*****

Camps, Camps and More Camps

In prior years, I have attended many high-level D1 camps around the nation, but I really wanted to experience some that I hadn’t been to before, so I was able to attend Duke, Clemson, Notre Dame, Purdue, Pacific and the University of Louisiana at Lafayette in August.  

At one camp, I got to know the head coach’s husband, which was not necessarily something I had planned on when I went to camp, but that’s one of the fun things about these trips: you meet people and make connections in ways you don’t expect.

At another campus visit, at which I didn’t attend their camp, I did meet three college players who were hitting balls in their cages.  They saw me taking selfies on their field and stopped practicing to show me around and even had me take a picture with them.  

Really nice girls.

I will never forget those kinds of moments, and I know when I am a college player, I will do the same for any recruits that show up unexpectedly, like I did.

Not only did I attend individual invite camps, I also attended multiple camps prior to each showcase tournament in places like Indiana, SoCal, Colorado and in Northern Cal cities like Elk Grove and Sacramento. 

Many of these camps had 50-plus college coaches from schools all over the country.  

Plus, I did ODM Metrics testing and attended the Firecrackers Organizational Camp in Colorado, so I have gotten to talk to a LOT of coaches.  

It can be a little intimidating at first because you’re standing there talking to coaches from schools you’ve watched on TV or heard about forever, but the more camps I went to the more comfortable I became talking to coaches and asking questions.  

Come to find out, they are just normal people like you and me!

*****

The Hotel Gym… My Second Home

Traveling doesn’t mean I get to take a vacation from working out, especially since I play multiple sports.  

I couldn’t miss my daily lifting workouts, and you can kind of say that I am addicted to getting stronger.

If we’re staying in a hotel, I use the hotel gym and later in the day my dad and I would find a high school field somewhere along the way or a D-BAT facility which were in just about every major city.  

Basically, my parents have become part softball coaches, part travel planners, part gym locators and part “Where can we find a batting cage?” experts.

*****

Tough Decisions

I have played many sports ever since I was four years old and giving up some hasn’t been easy. 

My first year of high school, I had to give up competitive swimming and golf which I had competed at since I was age 6.  

This Fall, I will be giving up volleyball so I can keep focusing more of my time on softball.  I will still be playing AAU and high school basketball, but softball will be my greatest focus since that is my true love.  

I knew I didn’t have enough time to do everything and if my goal is to play college softball and beyond, I needed to give softball and strength training more of my time.  

Once I get to college it will be 100 percent softball and I can’t wait to see how much I progress when I only have to focus on one sport!

*****

It’s Not Just About Softball

Probably the best part of this whole summer wasn’t the tournaments or even the college campuses… it’s the people I’ve met along the way. 

I’ve met girls from all over the United States who have completely different lives and experiences from mine. 

Some live near the beach, some live in places where it snows like crazy, some are pitchers, some are catchers, some are middle infielders and some are outfielders, but we all have one thing in common: our love of softball.

I’ve met girls at camps who were nervous and didn’t talk and I’ve met girls who were outgoing and hilarious. 

I’ve also met some really nice coaches and players who have taken time to talk to me, answer questions and make me feel welcome.  

That’s one of the things I didn’t expect when this summer started.  

I thought I would mostly be thinking about playing softball, but, instead, I’ve learned a lot about people and I’ve especially learned that you can travel thousands of miles away from home and still find people who are willing to cheer for you, help you, talk to you and become your friend.

*****

The Hardest Part of Traveling This Much

For years, I have also been really focused on staying fit.  I eat healthy, stay away from candy, go to bed early to get plenty of sleep and make sure I recover between games and workouts.

That isn’t always easy when you’re traveling, especially when you dad is mowing down a chili dog or your mom is offering you peanut M&Ms, but it’s doable with the right mindset.  

Sometimes you’re getting back to the hotel late, looking for a laundry mat to wash some clothes, waking up early for a camp, playing a game, driving four hours and then doing it all again the next day. 

But somehow, we keep going which brings up the question…

*****

Was It Worth It?

ABSOLUTELY!!!  

Even the crazy parts, like the delayed flights, the airport tarmacs, the rental car issues, the questionable hotel rooms and the incredible dry heat and insane humidity. 

Then you have the 4 a.m. wake-ups, the endless packing and unpacking and the fact that I could barely remember what state I was in sometimes, but still it was all worth it.

Every tournament has made me better, every camp has taught me something and every campus visit has helped me figure out what I like and what I don’t.  

Every coach I’ve talked to has given me something to think about and every girl I’ve met has added another friendship and another story to this crazy softball journey.  

I’m still figuring out where I want to go to college and what the future is going to look like, but I know one thing for sure: I want to play softball at the highest level I can.  

And I’m willing to work for it, so if this is what being a 2028 softball recruit is like… I’m buckled in!

Now I just need to figure out where we’re going next. And whether Oakley, my canine traveling buddy, is coming. 

Because let’s be honest,,, she’s probably the real star of this whole operation!

— Teal Hamman/Line Drive Contributor

Also, click HERE to access Teal’s Link Tree Account!

BONUS PHOTOS: 

Heere are more pics of campuses that the Hamman family checked out in person over the last few months…