Distance learning is challenging enough for a regular student; ever wonder what it is like to learn baseball during distance learning? The AHS Baseball team and coaches are having to adapt their usual way of doing things, much like everyone else, but this situation is also very unique, and the coaches and players are willing to talk about its uniqueness!

“We were notified that COVID-19 was going to affect us this year during March, right in the middle of our season,” said Baseball Coach Nicholas Lemas. “We all first thought that it was going to be a couple of weeks, and then that turned into longer than just a couple of weeks, and ever since then it just turned into a waiting game where you don’t really know how to plan nor what to do.”

Lemas and all the other coaches definitely received an unexpected hit by COVID-19, especially more so since “as a coach, you have a routine that you do every single year. So, when something hits your planning and summer rolls in–when we’re getting ready for the school year, we get ready for fundraising, practices, season games, and since this suddenly came around, that kind of just shot the planning down,” Lemas shared.

Despite COVID-19 showing up to affect the ending of the 2019-2020 school cycle, messing with the summer, and leaving a still-going degree of uncertainty for the start-up of the school year, the AHS Baseball team was lucky enough to still have their yearly summer camp.

“It was a lot different and we took a lot of safety measures and made sure that we were following all the rules, but we actually had a camp while most schools didn’t do anything,” said Lemas about the summer camp. There were around 30 players attending the camp over the summer to improve and continue to sharpen their skills with the help of the coaches over the course of more or less four weeks.

“My schedule weekly is to try and throw every day. Also to workout out every day as well. During our sixth-period baseball class, we do workouts and mobility work. Even though this sounds busy, it is nowhere close to what my schedule was like pre-COVID,” shared Casey Spencer, who spent two years on La Salle High School Varsity Baseball and is now a senior Varsity player at AHS.

The team has had to do workouts through Zoom calls, and Casey shared, “during our Zoom classes, we start off by stretching and then we transition to a full-body workout. I can say I definitely get a good sweat in. The only thing that differs from regular workouts is that we don’t have access to weights.”

Coach Lemas said that he is giving his players “workouts they can do by themselves if they’re in their room, or for those that go outside and to parks, I give them stuff that they can do.” He also shared that some players are playing for club teams, too, and that they oftentimes send him videos from their games or workouts for him to constructively criticize.

“Our coach has been nice enough to post a throwing program and workout program that he wants us to do. That helps to regulate what I am doing on a regular basis and helps me stay in shape if we have a season this year,” shared Harrison Meyers, a senior Varsity player who has been on the team for four years.

Speaking of “playing ball,” when is that happening exactly? It’s not certain, however, if things go as expected, the team might start to play games in January of next year. As to how that will look like and how it will work– that’s still a toss in the air, as of now.

Some baseball players shared what they do to stay fit. Mikey Easter, a senior Varsity player, shared that he has been working out at home, going on bikes and runs, and using weights he has at home. He also has a YouTube Channel with Spencer, Casey and Mikey Vlogs, where they share baseball-related videos. Meyers does workouts by himself and works on his throwing with a teammate while staying safe.

The boys shared that what they miss the most is being with all their teammates, but they keep motivated and looking at the bright side. “Knowing that we have a chance of coming back and having a season is enough to push for me,” Harrison shared. “If I get the chance I want to leave it all out on the field and have no regrets.”

“I’m pushing hard every day because I’m looking forward to the chance at playing baseball in college,” shared Mikey. “Don’t give up,” he said to anyone struggling. “You’re not the only one who’s going through these tough times.”

Graphic courtesy of VECTEEZY.COM