This article originated from the official site of British Baseball
Friday, March 21. Nineteen members of the British Baseball Academy left the UK on Tuesday, March 18 for the Easter Camp of a lifetime – two weeks at MLB Spring Training in the USA. Here is a chronicle of the trip so far:
Tuesday, March 18
The 11-hour flight seemed daunting, even though it was direct to Phoenix, Arizona. Add to that the journeys to Heathrow from across the UK (especially for the five players from Cumbria), and Tuesday was sure to be a long day. Despite the congestion and the usual hassles at Heathrow, a palpable excitement hung over the group through security, boarding and the flight. By the time they landed, checked in to the hotel, and had some dinner, most had endured more than 24 waking hours.
Wednesday, March 19
In a vain attempt to ward off jetlag and stretch the legs, Wednesday began with a sunrise run through the neighborhood and some agility work in the hotel carpark (sparking a great deal of curiosity on the part of a local building crew). Then it was downtown for a private tour of Chase Field, home of the Arizona Diamondbacks. The group heard all about the swimming pool above the right field fence, the retractable roof, some of the most massive home runs in stadium history, and the prices of seats throughout the ballpark. They got to visit the press box, a luxury suite, the visitor’ clubhouse, and finally the third base dugout.
After lunch, the caravan moved westward to Peoria, spring training home of the Seattle Mariners and San Diego Padres. Adding to the significance of this was the presence of two current Great Britain baseball players in these camps!
The boys walked through the fields and within 15 seconds of arrival were greeted by none other than current Padres manager Bud BLACK (diverting his attention from the game for a few moments after spotting the British Academy T-shirts). On the field were six Padres from the current Major League roster, including Adrian GONZALEZ and Trevor HOFFMAN, and directly to their right was Aeden MC QUEARY, Padres minor leaguer, GB star at last year’s European Championships and former Richmond Flame. Aeden was busy at work, but in between bullpen sessions he pointed out players and coaches and gave some tips to the Academy players.
At the conclusion of the Padres’ Minor League game, the Academy boys strolled across the facility to the Mariners side, where they were greeted by Brant UST, GB shortstop, Seattle minor leaguer and Most Valuable Player of 2007 European Championships. Brant spoke about his experiences at the European Championships in Barcelona, the road he’s followed in his quest to play Major League Baseball, and how the future of GB Baseball is in the hands of the group he was speaking to. He finished by donating one of his personalised bats to the group to be given as an award to the top hitter of the tour.
Thursday, March 20
Another day packed full of baseball started east of Tucson at Snediker Fields, where a number of university teams organize games during their spring break. The Academy players were lucky enough to see two Macalester College wins before lunch! The first practice then commenced – running, throwing, and defensive work on a back field. Not a bad way to shake off the rust of travel and adjust to the desert heat.
That evening, the group moved across the city to Surprise, home of the Texas Rangers and Kansas City Royals, where the Royals were pitted against the Milwaukee Brewers in one of their final tune-ups before the regular season begins. As the game was starting, the British group was inside the Royals clubhouse and weight room, glancing up at the national flags of each country that had a player playing for the club. The game ended with a decisive Royals win and some sunburnt GB necks and faces!
GB player Aeden MC QUEARY took time out from his busy training schedule to spend the evening at the game with the boys, spending the ride home trading observations from the game with Coach Liam CARROLL and the players.
Friday, March 21
Today, the party will travel two hours south to Tucson and will play their first game of the trip in the evening. Two more games and a visit to Mexico are in store for Saturday, March 22.
The rest of the week will include six more games in total, along with practices at local fields and a number of sessions in the batting cages with former Cleveland Indian Tom WADELL, who comes originally from Scotland and whose son, a former GB Junior, now plays at Manhattan College and is in the GB Senior programme. There will also be visits to the spring training homes of the Arizona Diamondbacks, the Chicago White Sox and the Colorado Rockies, not to mention a game between two of the top university programmes in the country – the University of Arizona and the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA).
The trip will conclude this weekend with a journey north to the Grand Canyon before the player’s return tanned, tired, and inspired to Great Britain.