KSHB 41 reporter Tod Palmer covers sports business and eastern Jackson County. Share your story idea with Tod.
It’s been a brutally cold week in Kansas City, disrupting the school year and relegating the region indoors, but baseball — as it does every year — provides a hopeful reminder that spring is near.
The gloves were popping and the metal bats were pinging Thursday morning at The Dugout KC in Independence, where the Sports Performance Youth Academy’s Wolfpack Baseball 12U teams gathered for a snow-day practice.
“This time of year, they’re already kind of — after Christmas gets done and New Year’s — they’re antsy for baseball season, so they come in excited,” said Sports Performance Youth Academy Wolfpack 12U Black baseball team head coach Josh Lewis. “But that’s definitely been prolonged with the snow days, I feel like. They come in more excited, definitely a lot of energy and ready to expend some of that energy.”
Lewis and 12U White head coach Max Gibler worked on fielding, footwork and patience to drive the ball the opposite way Thursday in a combined practice.
Most winters, a day off from school to play baseball would be welcome, but this winter’s been ridiculous with more than twice as many days with no school (43) — including breaks, holidays, weekends and snow days — as days in class (19) since the start of Winter Break in late December.
It’s all been a bit much.
“Way too much,” said Jalen Griffith, who pitches and plays first base and right field for the 12U Black team.
Griffith and the other 12U players made the best of yet another blisteringly cold day, a welcome chance to spend time with friends.
“I’ve been missing friends at school,” said Liam Sampson, who pitches and plays outfield for the 12U Black squad, “and with baseball I can go see more friends.”
It’s been a welcome release of energy.
“It is really nice to be able to see everybody on the baseball team — get to talk to them after you've been stuck inside all day,” Griffith said. “School, you kind of miss some of your friends once you’re gone from them so long.”
Last week, pitchers and catchers reported to spring training and the Kansas City Royals’ full squad reported Monday to Surprise, Arizona, this week for spring training.
“Hearing that pitchers and catchers report — I think the first spring training game for all of MLB is today — it’s definitely hope on the horizon for a lot of our families and a lot of our athletes,” Lewis said.
It also signals the return of warmer temperatures and a chance to get back outside.
“Next week, it’s like 50 and that’s triggering me that it’s going to start baseball soon,” Sampson said.
The Wolfpack baseball teams have an exciting season ahead with plans to participate June 6-13 in a national tournament in Cooperstown, New York.
“It’s an awesome experience for the kids,” Lewis said. “They get to do pin-trading, see the Baseball Hall of Fame, they stay in barracks with us coaches, so it’s a pretty interesting experience. But I know they’re all really excited and it’s our World Series in a sense. It’s what all this preparation and all this boring stuff that talk about and do is in preparation for that grand moment in Cooperstown.”
—
