An Innovative Approach to Increasing Youth Sport Participation: The Case of Baseball5™

Abstract

Youth sport participation preferences are evolving and shifting towards unorganized, non-traditional types of sport participation. This trend has left more traditional sports with decreasing participation numbers. Baseball Canada noticed a similar trend, and therefore implemented an innovative approach to increase interest and participation in baseball. This case study follows Alex, the Manager of Sport Development at Baseball Canada as they develop and evaluate Baseball5TM, an innovative street version of the traditional sport of baseball. This alternative form of baseball needs to be tested and evaluated in five pilot programs throughout Canada. Alex collects survey, interview, and focus group data following each of the pilot programs to determine whether the approach is viable for increasing interest in baseball long-term. After reading the case and learning about Alex’s program evaluation findings, students are tasked with designing the Baseball5TM program for long-term implementation. The case is ideal for upper-year undergraduate students who have the skills and knowledge necessary to execute program evaluations and build holistic program implementation plans.