Blast Motion Signs Ambassadors Haley Cruse, Paige Halstead

Blast Motion craved a bit more softball influence, so the California-based company looked to social media and signed two softball players with large followings: Haley Cruse and Paige Halstead.

Blast Softball, which combines sensor-based swing analysis with curated video clips in a mobile app, aims to give players of any level real-time feedback on their swing. Halstead, a former UCLA standout, national team player and professional, says Blast helped her improve her swing throughout her career, which has allowed her to become a better coach for the athletes she trains.

"Studying my swing data and analytics with Blast not only helps my mechanics, but my mental game as well," she says.

Cruse, a former Oregon standout and now a professional with the USSSA Pride and with a social media following of over 1 million, still uses Blast to train. "Whether it's off the tee or during live at-bats," she says, "this lets me gather as much data as possible about my swing so that I can understand what my strengths and weaknesses are."

By creating an ambassador team in softball, Cruse believes the company can help bring together a variety of softball generations. "New technology and analytics can seem overwhelming to softball traditionalists, so Blast creating an ambassador team will help bridge that gap and show that this information is not as intimidating as it may seem," she says. "It shows that Blast is a tool that is used successfully at the highest level of competition."

Using the tools, either as a player or coach, can translate to immediate help, says Halstead, who has over 800,000 followers on social media. "Blast's solution, including exit velocity data and the 3D Swing Tracer feature, allows me to see what my results are immediately," she says. "My biggest focus at UCLA was my exit velocity. I knew if my exit velocity was at a good place, then my swing was at a good place too. I am excited and confident to know that Blast is only going to continue to advance and produce better-quality metrics for myself and younger athletes."

Getting information about a swing that might not be easily visible to a coach watching is a key benefit, Cruse says. "The Blast team understands that everyone is different," she says, "so it is tailored to work with each athlete's individual swing."

Blast anticipates both new ambassadors to use their reach across Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, Facebook and YouTube to collaborate with Blast to create training videos featuring swing tips and tricks to help players improve, as well as generate content that showcases their personal goals, results, perspectives, personalities and behind-the-scenes journeys.

"Just like Haley and Paige, Blast is obsessed with sports and helping coaches as well as their players train smarter, compete with greater confidence and generate game-changing results," says Austin Hurwitz, Blast's director of digital marketing. "Our mission is to develop best-in-class solutions, helping athletes at all levels achieve greatness and grow the game. We're absolutely thrilled to collaborate with Haley and Paige, to engage the softball community like never before."

Tim Newcomb covers gear and business for Softball America. Follow him on Twitter at @tdnewcomb.

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