Garth Brooks sounds more like a major league general manager these days than a country music superstar.

"Injuries have been killing us," says the longtime baseball fan. "Losing Jason Kendall hurt a lot, and Bonds and Gwynn were out."

Now, Brooks isn't assessing his Rotisserie League team. He's talking about three participants in his new charity, the Touch 'em All Foundation. The organization enlists major league players to donate money based on their performances: $1,000 per home run, $300 per save, $100 per hit or pitcher's strikeout, etc. Touch 'em All assigns each player an entertainment celebrity, ideally of the player's own choosing. The celebrities and a corporate sponsor still to be announced match the players' donations. Starting in January, funds will be dispersed biannually to children's charities focused on educational programs, health care services and inner-city outreach.

"Kids are the last picture of innocence, and that's what charity should be about," says Brooks, the father of three daughters. "One hundred percent of the money generated on the field goes to the kids. That's not a goal, it's a rule. We'll find ways to privately fund the foundation's overhead."

Touch 'em All refers to a player hitting a home run, but in this case the phrase has a double meaning. "Garth and I spent eight months talking about a charity," says foundation president Bo Mitchell, son of ex-major leaguer Dale. "Garth wanted to touch as many kids as possible. He wanted to touch them all. As soon as I said that, I knew we were on to something."

Brooks and Mitchell formed the Denver-based foundation in January and designated a steering committee that includes major leaguers Wally Joyner and Brian Hunter and former player Harold Reynolds. To help launch the charity, Brooks attended spring training with the San Diego Padres. America's alltime top-selling solo artist even skipped the Grammy Awards to stay at camp.

He left his cowboy hat and boots in his locker, dressed out and didn't expect any special treatment," says Padres first baseman Joyner. "It was great to get to know him as a normal guy."

Brooks got only one hit, but he made friends throughout the game. Meanwhile, the Touch 'em All staff visited every training camp in Arizona and Florida, signing players to pledge forms to support the foundation's inaugural year.

Touch 'em All has doubled its start-up goal of 35 players, including superstars Kevin Brown, Roger Clemens, Ken Griffey Jr. and Larry Walker, and already had raised more than $1 million by the All-Star break. The foundation continues to round up celebrity partners. Brooks himself is matched with Clemens, David Wells and several others, though he would willingly give up a few of his big names to fellow entertainers.

"I'll pick anybody," he says. "It doesn't matter where the money comes from. The celebrities are watching the box scores to see how much they'll have to write checks for. It's making America's pastime count for every swing."