Young athletes learn from Mariners role models
Carrie Pichler
Awards winners include Landry Leishman, Zoran Lafrombois, Hanna Lytton and Alex Muzquiz.
Carrie Pichler
Cache Gauthier
Carrie Pichler
Mission Valley Mariners and camp participants pose for a group photo.
Carrie Pichler
Mariners' Coach Jami Hanson
Carrie Pichler
Mission Valley Mariner Ryan Pablo teaches Elijah Cummings how to hold a bat.
Carrie Pichler
A line of small gloves and mitts await play.
Carrie Pichler
Zoren Lafrombois
Carrie Pichler
Talon Pablo, 5
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While the clouds broke up and the sun poked through, 76 young ball players tromped onto the wet grass of O’Malley field bright eyed and star struck in the presence of their favorite sports stars – the Mariners.
On Saturday the Mariners hosted their annual “Mariners Camp,” where kids ages 7-15 got to spend the day being coached by the Mariners and learning basic baseball fundamentals.
For the kids, it’s not only fun, but it also gives them the opportunity to learn how to hold a bat, throw a pitch, or run the bases. For the Mariners it gives them the chance to provide instruction and to understand just how important being a role model is to the younger generations.
Marshall Pablo, father of campers Talon, 5, and Landon, 7, said the camp is a lot of fun and important for his ball playing sons.
“It’s awesome,” Pablo said. “They learn a lot of basic skills and it’s really good to get the interaction with the older kids that they look up to.”
The day is not only about instruction but also includes a t-shirt, lunch on the benches and awards hand-picked by the Mariners seniors. The awards are based on how well the kids respond to direction, how hard they work and impressions made to the M’s throughout the camp. This year’s award winners were Hanna Lytton, Landry Leishman, Zoran Lafrombois, and Alex Muzquiz. Prizes included a mitt, batting gloves, a bat, and a batting helmet.
The kids aren’t the only ones that enjoy camp; the Mariners were having fun of their own. M’s catcher Alex Killian provided a few giggles while coaching catching fundamentals.
“It’s all about keeping the youth involved and interested in the game,” he said. “I like teaching the kids what I know.”
For most of the Mariners, it was just a few short years ago that they were the little ones donning their camp shirts proudly.
Also invited to take part and get in a little bit of a coaching clinic are the Cal Ripkin and Babe Ruth coaches, who receive advice and tips from the Mariners long-time American Legion Head Coach Jami Hanson.
At the end of the day the camp was a big hit, boasting 21 more campers than last year, which is also a big hit for the Mariners. The cost of the camp is kept low for the kids, with scholarships given for those in need. No kid is turned away because of inability to pay, but money brought in from camp fees goes directly to helping the Mariners fund their own season.
The Mariners will continue the camp next year with hopes of increasing attendance even more. Not for the money, not for the fame, but for the kids. Each kid will take with them the memory of their day at O’Malley and use that memory to strive to someday walk out onto the diamond in a Mariners’ uniform.
