Program Update

Our baseball season is on hold right now, and we will not be gathering as a group until the government eases its restrictions and recommendations.

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During your time as a Bandit, you’ve heard me talk about how important it is to make decisions that support our team. This is even more important during a crisis. Right now our community is our team, and we all need to be good teammates by making smart decisions — practicing good hygiene, social distancing, patience, and kindness. We can't control everything that happens, but we can control how we handle it.​

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I’ll be in touch with updates as appropriate. In the meantime, you can find some ideas for staying in shape under Training at Home (below). Feel free to reach out to me if you have any questions.

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— John

EBL Update

An update from the directors of the Elite Baseball League (revised start date is 5/2).

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"On Sunday March 29th President Donald Trump extended the national social-distancing guidelines aimed at fighting the coronavirus pandemic to April 30th. With this announcement, the EBL will now cancel all games in April. Our new target start date will be the weekend of May 2nd.
 
We have no intentions of canceling the season. We will delay the start of the season and/or extend the season as much as possible. We will not start the season until we get the go ahead from the higher authorities that it is safe to do so. We feel this week to week strategy beginning the first weekend of May is the best approach. 
 
We will continue to monitor developments in regards to the COVID-19 virus over the next 3-4 weeks before we make any final decisions on schedules and extensions."

Training at Home​​

Some things you can do every day to stay in baseball shape while team activities are suspended.​ You can do these things indoors or outdoors, with or without a ball, and even if you don't have a partner.

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THROWING MECHANICS

Practice the warm-up throwing fundamentals that we've been working on since September (50 per day): 

• Start with ball/glove at the center of your chest.

• Separate hands with thumbs pointing down.

• Point front elbow/glove at your target.

• Extend throwing arm behind you, but keep some bend in your elbow.

• Throw with fingers on top of the ball.

• Follow the path of the ball with your head, chest, and back leg.

• Catch ball in the center of your body with your hands together.

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INFIELD MECHANICS

Practice our infield fundamental progressions and drills (50 per day): 

• Step into ready position.

• Stutter-step to time the hops.

• Step forward with right foot (for righties) and extend your glove down and away from you.

• Step forward with left foot, glove below the ball (fingertips to the ground), eyes behind the ball.

• Field ball on the glove side (not dead center), with hands together.

• Transfer, pivot hips, and step (right, then left) into throwing position.

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OUTFIELD MECHANICS

Practice our outfield fundamental drills (50 per day): 

• Step into ready position.

• Pop-step to get a good jump on the ball.

• "Hurry up and wait" to get behind the ball and beat it to the spot.

• Field the ball with glove side forward, in front of your throwing shoulder.

• Crow-hop into throwing position.

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SWING​ MECHANICS

Reinforce muscle memory by practicing your swing with proper fundamentals (100 per day):

• Keep front side (foot/shoulder) closed.

• Rotate and drive back hip through the ball.

• Start hands above the ball (shoulders level).

• Throw hands to the inner half of the ball.

• Flatten bat through the zone.

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STRENGTH & CONDITIONING

Do a few of our strengthening drills:

• Upper Body: 50 heavy-bat swings (with proper mechanics), 25 push-ups (with a flat back).

• Core: 50 bicycle crunches (abs), 50 bridges (lower back).

• Legs: 50 side-to-side lunges, 50 front-back lunges, 50 high-knee running.

Upcoming Schedule

Our plan for the weeks ahead.​

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SPRING SEASON

Here's the latest on our spring schedule:

• EBL: Each Bandits team has a doubleheader every Saturday beginning 5/2, including Memorial Day weekend.

• EMIBL: Schedule not available yet. Expect games on Sunday evenings and Tuesday and/or Thursday each week.

• Practice on Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday each week, depending on our weekday game schedule.

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MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND

Each Bandits team has a double-header on Saturday, 5/23. Two players have conflicts that day, so we're expecting everyone else to be available.

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PRACTICE ATTENDANCE

For each practice, inform coach as far ahead of time as possible if you will be arriving late, leaving early, or absent.

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SHOW UP PREPARED

Wear baseball pants or sweat pants to every practice (no shorts), and bring all of your gear. If you're a catcher, be sure to bring a protective cup. For indoor practices in the BHS Pavilion, wear sneakers.

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League Announcements​​

News and other stuff about our spring leagues.

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EBL START DATE

As of 3/30, the EBL has canceled the first month of games. Our tentative start date for Saturday double-headers is now 5/2.​

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SPRING BAT RULES

Below are the bats allowed in each of the two leagues we compete in (EMIBL and EBL). Each team will have at least one team bat, so you're not required to have your own. If you use your own bat, make sure it has one of the official stamps (shown below). Contact coach with any questions.

 

8th-Grade Team

EMIBL and EBL: Any drop-three (-3) bat with the BBCOR stamp.

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7th-Grade Team

EMIBL: Any -3 BBCOR bat, or a drop-five (-5) bat with the USA Baseball stamp.

EBL: Any -3 BBCOR bat or any bat with the ​
USA Baseball stamp (no drop limit).