How We Play: Softball
One roster. One city. One Champion.
Athletes Unlimited Pro Softball features two seasons: its Championship season and AUX event.
The Championship season features 60 pro softball athletes competing for five weeks in Rosemont, Illinois during July and August.
AUX is a short, intense, and exciting Athletes Unlimited Pro Softball competition in Wichita, Kansas. The event brings together 42 athletes to compete for two weeks in June, consisting of 18 games.
The Athletes Unlimited Format
Teams Change Each Week/Series
In both AU Pro Softball competitions, we bring a group of all-star athletes to one city for a playoff intensity competition. Teams are redrafted each series, which means you see the best players battling with and against each other in different combinations. All active players from the roster will be on one of the competing teams.
To find what team your favorite players are on in any given week during Championship season, click here. For AUX, click here.
How We Draft
The Leaderboard
As the season progresses, we keep a running leaderboard that counts points for each athlete individually. You can see the leaderboard change constantly throughout the game as athletes make plays.
Athletes earn points in three ways:
- When their team wins a game or inning
- When they make a positive play on the field; Pitchers may lose points for giving up an earned run.
- When they are voted one of the top 3 MVPs of a game by players and fans.
You don’t have to do the math, our leaderboard will do it for you. But if you want to know how many points a given action is worth, check out How We Score.
Captains
Each series the top four players (three during AUX) on the leaderboard serve as team captains and draft their new teams. The captains have the ultimate authority over the team – lineups, in-game decisions, and practice plans. They also have a coach to collaborate with; we refer to them as facilitators.
For more on the draft check out our How We Draft video.
Becoming a Champion
At the end of the season, the athlete who sits atop the leaderboard is the champion — and the margin can be small! In some seasons, one play has decided the difference between first and second place. Every game, every play, every moment counts.
That means no meaningless mid-season games. No athletes taking a night off. This is all-star talent and playoff intensity, every game.
So pick your favorite players, cheer for their teams, vote for your MVP, and watch them compete to climb up the leaderboard. And when the final game ends we’ll see who rises to the top and is crowned the champion.
HOW WE DRAFT
After the last game of every series, the top four point scorers will be named team captains. Each captain will be assigned to a team color based on their standing.
No. 1: Gold
No. 2: Orange
No. 3: Blue
No. 4: Purple
Purple is not included during AUX, as the season has a 42-player roster. The event also includes a unique draft format compared to the Championship season in which captains draft No. 3, No. 2, and No. 1 for each round instead of a snake draft.
Team captains can consult with anyone they want prior to the opening of the draft, including any Athletes Unlimited staff, former coaches, and teammates.
During the draft, captains are allotted up to two minutes per pick. Once a player is selected their captain may consult them for further decisions. Once all players have been selected, it will be time to prepare for the upcoming slate of games and get ready to play ball.
HOW WE SCORE
Win Points
Win points are all about the team’s performance. They accumulate during both individual innings and overall game wins. Each inning is worth +10 points and overall games are worth +50 points.
If an inning is tied, the points roll over to the subsequent inning.
Game MVPs
After each game, the players and members of the Unlimited Club vote for players who they feel had standout performances.
These points will be added to the player’s individual total. Points are awarded as follows:
MVP 1: +60 points
MVP 2: +40 points
MVP 3: +20 points
Players also have the option to vote for a Defensive MVP (+20 points). For the Defensive MVP to be activated, 50% of eligible players must opt to vote. For example, if 28 players compete in a game, 14 must vote. If only 13 players vote, there will be no Defensive MVP. The player who receives the majority of that vote will receive 20 points so long as they have not already won MVP 1, 2, or 3.
Individual Stats
The final component of points is individual stats. Position players and pitchers earn points based on their performance.
Offensive Points
The breakdown for individual points is as follows:
- Single: +10 points
- Double: +20 points
- Triple: +30 points
- Home run: +40 points
- Stolen base: +10 points
- Caught Stealing: -10 points
- Walk: +10 points
- HBP: +8 points
- Sacrifice Fly/Bunt: +10
If a batter goes 3-for-5 with two singles and a home run but is caught stealing, they will be awarded 50 points.
10 (S) + 10 (S) + 40 (HR) – 10 (CS) = 50 points
Pitching Points
Pitchers earn +4 points for every out and -10 points for each earned run allowed.
For example, if a pitcher throws 5 2/3 innings and allows one earned run, they would earn 58 points.
(17 x 4) – (1 ER x 10) = 58 points
A player’s total points determine their leaderboard ranking, which will be used after each series to select captains.
Extra Innings
In extra innings, no player earns individual points and there are no additional win points to be earned per inning – only those that have rolled over.
For example, if all seven innings were tied and the game took nine innings to decide a winner, only 70 points, plus win points, would be awarded.