FUNGOMAN JOURNAL

Whether you're in the market for coaching expertise, better equipment, or up-and-coming information on the sport, you might appreciate some of the things we're discovering at FungoMan LLC about the game we've recently tapped into. Around 14 years ago, FungoMan's inception began as a solution for baseball practice efficiency, but it wasn't until a few years ago that we saw a real opportunity to advance another sport with hopefully the same kind of impact -- fastpitch softball. Right now, we're manning the post at our first softball convention at the National Fastpitch Coaching Association Convention in Atlanta, GA, and the response to the technology and coaching empowerment movement that we so whole-heartedly believe in has been nothing short of encouraging. Read on for more on our first impressions of the softball community taken from tweets @NFCAorg and #FillYourBucket at the NFCA convention.

Did you know that Indoor Baseball is an official game all its own? Did you know that the same day America consumes 46 million turkeys is also the birthday of Indoor Baseball? That's right, indoor baseball, first conceived by George Hancock, became a game with an official rulebook and everything back on Thanksgiving 1887. (Click image to read the full rulebook, provided by The Library of Congress) Today young players and baseball's best still seek to play no matter the storm. In fact, 6 out of 30 Major League Stadiums have retractable or fixed roofs, making for much happier players and fans in the colder and more tropical states. The likes include: Rogers Centre, Toronta Blue Jays Chase Field, Arizona Diamondbacks Safeco Field, Seattle Mariners Miller Park, Milwaukee Brewers Minute Maid Park, Houston Astros Marlins Park, Maimi Marlins Tropicana Field, Tampa Bay Rays For those who want to play better no matter the weather, the rest of baseball turns to indoor training facilities, where young players fire up their game in the warmth of air-controlled facilities, with excellent turf, and other training tools. So, on the Eve of the day our American culture ackowledges those to whom we are most thankful, FungoMan would like to give these awesome customers a hattip for making baseball practice engaging and possible for their players, and for allowing us to help do exactly that. To find out just how many FungoMan's help assist indoor baseball facilities, read on.

Ever heard something about baseball that you didn't understand? You're not alone. As a kid growing up around baseball, you'd hear phrases like "he's got soft hands" or "that ball was smoked!" and maybe scratch your head wondering what all this meant? Was it good or bad that his hands where soft? Is a "smoked ball" a fast pitch or a hard hit "zinger"? While language is always evolving, so does baseball slang among players and fans. So until further notice, here's a little examination on the taken-for-granted baseball terms that baseball enthusiasts know, leaving the rest "caught looking."