Bob Young’s batting camp has become its own event at Mingus Union High School.
What started as an informal Saturday batting practice with local Little League coaches after games has 13 years later become a three-day camp, as the longtime Marauders head baseball coach pitched to 35 boys and girls, ages 6 through 14, on the MUHS varsity field Tuesday, May 27.
“Originally, what we used to do during our season on a Saturday, right when Little League started practicing, we tried to have our players, have our coaches work with the kids a little while,” Young said. “We wanted to share with the Little League kids our philosophy, but most of the feedback was that they just needed a lot of work on their hitting, and it kind of evolved into a three-day thing.”
So, like the Arizona Diamondbacks and Yavapai College before him, Young figured, “Hey, we might as well start one.”
Varsity underclassmen from the MUHS baseball team, such as recent junior infielders Orlando Machado and Tom McCarty, help fulfill their community service requirements for graduation at the same time as they help both boys and girls with the basic fundamentals of hitting, such as personal stance, placement of hands on the bat and keeping their head with the ball through the swing.
For the full story, please see the Wednesday, May 28, issue of the Cottonwood Journal Extra.
