The Boll family YMCA stands almost within sight of Comerica Park, where the American league Champion Detroit Tigers play. And while the field is covered with snow and spring training is still a long way off, Detroit kids are getting a chance to learn the fundamentals of baseball through a series of clinics at the Boll Family YMCA.
Justin Prinstein runs the clinics. He’s a professional baseball player in Europe, acting as player-manager of the Hrosi Drno team in the Czech Republic and also serving as manager of the Hungarian national baseball team. When he returned home to Detroit in the off-season, he was looking for a place to train and found the Boll Y. In doing so, he realized that Detroit lacks facilities to play baseball, especially the kind of indoor winter training clinics that are common in the suburbs. So he approached Y program director Nikole Saffle about starting a baseball clinic for the community that would be free to the public. The first clinics last year were a huge success, and this year’s series kicks off today.
“We have kids who come in that have never seen a baseball, and we also have kids come in who are really good and really talented and could go someplace,” he says. The Y has a type of portable batting cage that can be used indoors, soft, cushioned baseballs and other equipment. For this year’s clinics, Franklin Park Vision in Sylvania, Ohio donated hundreds of dollars worth of equipment for the participants to use, Justin says.
The program is open to both boys and girls. In fact, Justin says, last year a girl was the best player.
Although the Tigers’ recent success has sparked more interest in baseball, city kids tend to be more into football or basketball. Justin says that beyond learning a new sports skill, there are a lot of valuable lessons in baseball that can benefit young people.
For example, he says, it’s a team sport so sometimes players have to sacrifice for the good of the whole team, but individual excellence also matters. And because there is no clock, it teaches patience and persistence: sometimes players have to wait for the right pitch before they swing instead of making choices because the clock is running down, and even if they are down 20 runs in the last inning they could still come back and win the game so giving it their all until the very last out is important. “They learn you should keep fighting and keep trying even when you see all the cards are stacked against you,” he says.
Another way in which persistence pays off in baseball and life is learning how to accept failure as well as success. “You can be the best player in the world and still get an out 7 or 8 times out of 10,” Justin says. “Learning how to be not successful is just as important as learning how to be successful.”
The next clinics are Feb. 9 and 23 and every Saturday in March. Ages 7-9 or less experienced players can come from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. and ages 10-12 or more experienced players can come from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. Programs are free, but preregistration is suggested to reserve a spot. Call the Boll Connection Desk at 313-309-9622 to preregister.