Ceres High School grad Nicole “Sis” Bates partnered with Adidas when she signed a multi-year endorsement deal with the athletic brand in February of 2022.
“I love them so much,” Bates stated during a Softball America postgame interview with Sydney Supple during the opening week of Athletes Unlimited Professional League play. “I can’t believe what they’re doing for women in sports. When I was young, I looked up to a lot of baseball players and to have the first softball cleat, it’s crazy. I truly can’t believe it.”
Adidas released Bates’ Remember to Have Fun 2 Adizero Instinct softball cleats last month.
“I hope y’all love them as much as I do!” she stated in an Instagram post on Aug. 6. “Shoutout to my peeps at @adidasdugout for turning this gals dream into a reality. I’m in love!!!”
Bates helped design her cleats, which included selecting style, colorway and personal touches.
Her mantra, “Remember to Have Fun” is inscribed on the insoles and outsoles of each rainbow-colored cleat.
Her name, “Sis Bates” is printed on inner collar of each cleat.
Adidas also made sure to incorporate smiley-face logos into the design as Bates radiates positivity on and off the field.
“They gave me a lot of freedom on how I wanted the cleat to look,” said Bates, who is featured in a 35-second Adidas Dugout commercial on Instagram.“I typically like a white cleat so that’s why I went with that. I wanted it to be fun. Just bringing joy and fun into it whenever we can is really what I wanted to be my shoe.”
Available in sizes for children and women, Bates’ cleats can be purchased online at Dick’s Sporting Goods.
On June 21, uniforms were unveiled for the 2024 Little League Softball World Series. Inspired by Bates and provided by Adidas, Bates’ “Remember to Have Fun” mantra is inscribed on the inside back collar of every uniform.
Bates’ smiley face/flower logo can be seen on the right sleeve of each jersey.
Every Little League Softball World Series player was also given a pair of Bates’ second generation cleats.
Raised in the city of Ceres, Bates attended Carroll Elementary School, Mae Hensley Jr. High and Ceres High School before earning a softball scholarship to the University of Washington.
She fell in love with the sport of softball at a young age.
She has fond memories of playing Wiffle ball with her older brother Jimmy and his friends.
She played recreational ball at George Costa Ball Field Complex.
Bates suited up for several travel programs, including Tri-County Smash, NorCal Firecrackers and Firecrackers-Rico.
She won the 18-and-under PGF National Championship with the Huntington Beach-based Firecrackers-Rico team in 2016.
“As long as I can remember I’ve loved the sport so much,” Bates said. “I remember being little and asking my mom when’s softball season again. We lived right next to our little rec ball field.
Bates joined the professional ranks when she got selected during the Athletes Unlimited Softball College Draft in 2021.
“This is my job,” she said. “I get to play with my best friends every day. What a blessing.”
Bates completed her fourth season of AU softball this summer.
She batted .327 from the plate with one home run, six doubles, six RBIs, nine runs and four stolen bases in 15 games.
“I never really look at the leaderboard,” Bates said. “I’m not really too worried about that. I’m worried more about how can I help the person to my left and the person to my right.”
Bates has represented the U.S. Women’s National Softball Team on the international stage in Italy, Chile, Guatemala, Mexico, Canada, Australia, Ireland and Japan.
A standout infielder/hitter at NCAA Division-I Washington from 2017-21, Bates became the Huskies’ all-time hits leader during her final season. She collected 320 hits in 261 career games.
Bates became just the second player in Pac-12 history to win the conference’s Defensive Player of the Year award three times. Her career fielding percentage of .980 is the second-highest mark for any middle infielder in program history.
Bates also made history by becoming just the fifth hitter from Washington to earn NFCA All-American honors for a third time.
Bates filled a major role in the Huskies to 222 victories, three trips to the Women’s College World Series—including one finals berth—and one Pac-12 regular-season title.
She was a four-year standout at Ceres High School.
Bates was voted 2016 Cal-Hi Sports Ms. Softball State and Medium Schools Player of the Year. She also participated in the Premier Girls Fastpitch (PGF) High School All-American Game.
Bates batted .571 from the plate with five homers, four triples, nine doubles, 33 RBIs, 45 runs and 14 stolen bases while striking out just five times in 113 plate appearances during her senior year with the Bulldogs. She made just one error on defense.
Led by Bates, Ceres High collected 85 wins, claimed one Sac-Joaquin Section championship, captured three Western Athletic Conference crowns and appeared in the playoffs four times.
