Nashville RBI has grown tremendously since its inception, now encompassing more than 1,000 boys and girls ages five to 14. In addition to coaches, ball fields, and umpires, the program provides the kids with all of the necessary tools to play the game, including bats, gloves, uniforms and safety equipment.

Why RBI?

RBI is a youth outreach program designed to promote interest in baseball while increasing the self-esteem of disadvantaged children and encouraging kids to stay in school and off the streets. RBI has baseball and softball programs in 185 cities worldwide, reaching more than 120,000 boys and girls.

RBI was founded in 1989 in South Central Los Angeles by Major League baseball player John Young. The program was designed to not only encourage participation in the game of baseball, but also to provide young people with a positive team-oriented activity that would keep them off the streets while challenging their minds and bodies. In 1991,

Major League Baseball assumed the administration of RBI and initially, in conjunction with the Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association, made start-up grants to RBI programs around the world. Each RBI chapter is now responsible for raising its own funds.

Major League Baseball's Goals for RBI
1. Increase participation and interest in baseball.
2. Encourage academic participation and achievement.
3. Promote greater inclusions of minorities into the mainstream of the game.
4. Develop self-esteem and teach the value of teamwork.
5. Increase the number of talented athletes prepared to play in college and the minor leagues.

MISSION

Nashville RBI uses baseball and softball and the power of teams to provide inner city youth with opportunities to play, to learn and to grow, inspiring them to recognize their potential and realize their dreams.

Benton Dalton
Partner, KFMG printing.
Mr. Dalton has been in the printing industry for more than 17 years. In 2005 Benton became a partner at KFMG, a locally owned printing distributorship that services a variety of industries through out the United States . He manages local and national accounts that have between one and 300 branch offices. Benton has been very active in youth sports in Nashville and Hendersonville for many years.

STEVEN J. EISEN is a partner in the Nashville office of Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz.  His experience includes corporate representation, securities offerings, intellectual property , and representation of financial institutions throughout the Southeast. Eisen was named one of "Best Lawyers in Nashville" by Nashville Post magazine in 2003, one of the "Best Lawyers in Tennessee" by Business TN annually since 2004, one of the “Mid-South Super Lawyers” by Mid-South Super-Lawyers Magazine annually since 2006, and has been listed annually since 1995 in the preeminent legal guide Best Lawyers in America©. 

He is a member of the lawyers committee and government relations committee of the Tennessee Bankers Association and a member of the American Bar Association, its Banking Law Committee of the Business Section and the Intellectual Property Section. He is a board member of the Downtown Nashville Exchange Club, the Exchange Club Family Center , and the West End Synagogue. 

Eisen holds a Bachelor's Degree in Economics from Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois; and both a Juris Doctor Degree and MBA from Vanderbilt University.

Kevin Hargrove
Branch Manager, the Brickman Group

Tom Jurkovich
Attorney, Waller Landsden
Tom Jurkovich is a partner at the Nashville law firm of Waller Lansden and practices primarily in the area of government relations. Tom represents clients in involved in major retail, residential and commercial development projects, and also counsels businesses seeking to establish, expand or relocate corporate operations in Nashville .

Prior to joining Waller Lansden, Tom served for six years as the Director of The Mayor’s Office of Economic Development, serving as former Nashville Mayor Bill Purcell’s principal liaison to the Nashville and Metropolitan Davidson County business community. He also represented the administration on the boards of the Metropolitan Nashville Airport Authority, Nashville Chamber of Commerce, Nashville Downtown Partnership, Nashville Technology Council and the Nashville Sports Council.

Tom earned his undergraduate degree from Vanderbilt University and his J.D. from the University of Tennessee . He attended high school with Nashville RBI executive director Reggie Whittemore.

Andrew Maraniss
Vice President, McNeely Pigott & Fox Public Relations, LLC
Maraniss, a native of Washington, D.C., joined McNeely Pigott & Fox in November 1998 after spending the previous six years in athletic media relations. He specializes in writing and media relations, working with clients in fields ranging from automotive remarketing to wireless technology. Maraniss served as media relations manager for major league baseball's Tampa Bay Devil Rays during the team's inaugural season of 1998. Prior to that, he spent five years as associate director of media relations at the Vanderbilt University athletic department. A 1992 Vanderbilt graduate, Maraniss attended VU on the Fred Russell - Grantland Rice sportswriting scholarship.

"Butch" McCord
A first baseman in the Negro Leagues from 1946-50, McCord played for the Baltimore Elite Giants (including the club’s 1949 National Negro League championship team), Chicago American Giants, and Nashville’s Black Vols and Cubs. Butch followed up that five-year stint with a successful career in the minor leagues, where he made history by becoming the first minor leaguer to win two batting titles and Silver Glove awards in two consecutive years (1958-59). In the minors he played for the Denver Bears, Louisville Colonels and Victoria Rosebuds. “Butch” had a batting average of .392 and was the first player ever to be awarded the Silver Glove 2 years in a row.

Angela Newman
Vice President Renal Advantage, Inc.
Ms. Newman has over 15 years experience in healthcare supply chain management. She currently serves as Vice President of Supply Chain for Renal Advantage Inc (RAI), a dialysis company in Brentwood. Prior to RAI, she served as Vice President of Logistics for National Nephrology Associates. She holds a MBA in Healthcare Management.

Pete Weber
Announcer, Nashville Predators
Pete Weber is the extremely popular “Voice of the Nashville Predators,” now in his 10th season as the play-by-play announcer for Nashville’s NHL franchise.

A versatile sports commentator, Pete has helped out with the Triple-A baseball Nashville Sounds broadcasts and has produced and hosted a weekly podcast called "This Week in the Minor Leagues" along with the syndicated “Southern Pro Football.”

A graduate of the University of Notre Dame, Weber spent two seasons (1995-97) as the radio play-by-play announcer for the Buffalo Sabres and three seasons (1978-81) as the color analyst for the Los Angeles Kings.  In addition to his NHL experience, Weber has served as a play-by-play voice in baseball (Buffalo Bisons, 1983-95), basketball (Seattle SuperSonics, 1981-82) and football (University of Buffalo, 1992).  He was part of the Buffalo Bills' broadcast team during their four Super Bowl seasons (1990-93).

Jeff Wernick
Senior Vice President, FIG Partners LLC
Mr. Wernick joined Rodgers Capital Group (RCG) in 2000 and currently serves as a Partner in the firm’s merchant banking group. In this capacity, Mr. Wernick is responsible for developing client relations, executing merger and acquisition assignments and assisting companies with their capital formation process. Prior to joining RCG, Mr. Wernick worked with SunTrust Equitable Securities as a member of the firm’s investment banking group. He is very active in the local community serving as a founding board member of Nashville’s Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities program and has participated with other non-profit organizations including Junior Achievement and Habitat for Humanity.

Reginald Whittemore
Executive Director Nashville RBI, Inc.
Mr. Whittemore has spent much of his life in Nashville having played locally for the McGavock High School team, which he led to a state championship. Mr. Whittemore went on to play at Lipscomb University in the late 1970’s where he was part of two national championship teams, 1977 and 1979. His professional baseball career lasted for nine years and was spent primarily in the Boston Red Sox minor league system, where he spent time with the Triple-A organization. Mr. Whittemore was asked by Charlie Finchum, a long-time executive of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Nashville, in the early 1990’s to bring the RBI program to Nashville. Mr. Whittemore began the Nashville RBI program in 1996 with six teams and has grown the organization to include over 1,000 kids in the last ten years. The Nashville Sports Council awarded him in January 2003 with the Community Spirit Award for his work with Nashville RBI and subsequently awarded him with the Comcast Champions Awards in 2006. He received the Reese L. Smith, Jr. Community Service Award in 2005 for his outstanding contribution to the youth of Nashville.

FROM THE DIRECTOR