From Empower Baseball to Vias RD: How We Got Here

If you've followed us for a while, you may have known us as Empower Baseball. We were founded in 2020 under that name, and for six years it served us well enough. But in 2026, we became Vias RD. Here's the honest story of why — and why the change matters for the kids we serve.

The Legal Threat That Forced Our Hand

In early 2026, a for-profit baseball bat company called M^Powered Baseball issued a cease-and-desist demand, claiming our name was too similar to theirs. We believed we had a strong legal position — a nonprofit serving Dominican youth in Barahona has nothing to do with a bat manufacturer. But legal fights cost money, and that money belongs to our kids, not to lawyers.

We had a choice: fight over a name, or use the moment to build something better. We chose the latter. The rebrand wasn't a retreat. It was a decision.

Why "Vias RD"?

In Spanish, vías means ways, routes, or pathways. We chose it because that's exactly what we build — more ways forward for young people in Barahona who would otherwise have only one path available to them: baseball or nothing.

The name also reflects how kids enter our program. Some come through the Baseball Via. Some will come through the Education Via, or the Girls Softball Via, or future vías we haven't built yet. The name holds the whole vision, not just one part of it.

And "RD" is República Dominicana — where this work lives, where these kids are, where Bernarda and Ulises show up every single day.

What Didn't Change

Everything that mattered stayed the same. The 48 student-athletes in Barahona. Los Piratas del Sur. The commitment letter every player signs. The rule that school comes first. Bernarda Acosta still manages the program with 25 years of relationships behind her. Coach Ulises Batista still runs practice every day after school. Brian still runs all of this from Utah on nights and weekends while working full-time.

The EIN is the same: 85-0947825. The 501(c)(3) status is the same. The mission is the same. We just have a name that finally says what we actually are.

What "Siempre Pa'lante" Means

Our movement slogan — Siempre Pa'lante — means always forward. It's what Dominican mothers say to their kids when life gets hard. It's what Bernarda says when a player's grades slip and they're at risk of losing their spot. It's what the rebrand is.

We didn't stop. We didn't retreat. We built something better and kept moving.

Más que un juego, un camino. More than a game, a pathway. That's Vias RD.

If you supported Empower Baseball, thank you. Your support carried us to this moment. The kids you helped are still here — still in school, still playing, still building a future. Now they're doing it under a name that tells the full story.

Read more about Vias RD, see our impact, or donate today to keep the mission moving forward.