1st Day of Practice

Straight from my high school baseball practice, I drove to Laurel Hill playground, put back on my spikes, which were muddy from countless ground balls and hours in the batting cage, and walked on to the field where my baseball career had essentially begun. A short 13 years ago, I was player for the JCC Doubledays, coached by Mick Colburn. Now I found myself as a coach for the JCC Diamond Jaxx. ( if anything the 13 years had at least yielded more creative team names.) However, I payed homage to the founder of American baseball by explaining to a relatively uninterested player about how I was once in his shoes on the very same field. After some initial awkward moments and some confused faces, I quickly was able to immerse myself into the practice of the team, helping individual players on their throwing and fielding skills. It was a stark contrast between the pick off plays we were working on with my high school team and the throwing and catching that I was teaching with the Diamond Jaxx. The highlight of the day was when I had to chase down a kid who had decided practice was over and ran off the field. Overall, my first practice was enjoyable. I had a great time running back memory lane and revisiting all the great memories I had from my days as a JCC baseball player. I am exciting to continue to work with the team throughout the rest of the reason.

Matt Schneider