April 30, 2014 at 2:30 p.m.
RHS baseball team works with young players at clinic
RHS baseball team works with young players at clinic
Baseball players ranging from seven to 12 years old practiced some fundamental techniques under the watchful eyes of Rhinelander High School head baseball coach Joe Waksmonski and his varsity Hodags.
Brandon Reinthaler - varsity player and acting coach for the day - said he had a great time interacting with the younger players.
"I had a lot of fun seeing all the different age levels and how they perform," he said. "It was great to see how much they love the game. These are our future athletes that are going to be playing here soon, so it's important to teach them and get them excited to get to the next level."
Each age group had their own time with the coaching staff, starting with the youngest players at 9:30 a.m. to the oldest in the afternoon.
The group worked on the basics like throwing, catching and hitting off a tee. Payton Johnson worked with the last group and said he had a blast.
"I learned how to field ground balls and how to field pop flies," he said. "I had a lot of fun working with the varsity team."
Waksmonski said the free clinic was a huge success and serves as a part of an important base for the entire program.
"It's important," he said. "The kids get to experience baseball here on the big field. It's great to see their energy. Here early in the season, they haven't had much practice time, so we get to go over the fundamentals and get the kids outside."
While the campers had a great time and practiced plenty of their fundamentals, Waksmonski said his varsity players had plenty of fun too.
"It's a way for our guys to give back to the community and it's great because it's things they've gone though growing up," he said. "I think they had a great time. A couple of the guys made some bets that they lost, so they had to run to McDonalds afterward to pay up with some ice cream cones. Our guys have a lot of fun with it because it's a way to be on the diamond and be around baseball but in a relaxed way."
Andy Hildebrand may be reached at [email protected].
Comments:
You must login to comment.