Open field

A new style of pre-season conditioning

BY ETHAN BUTT Staff Reporter

Taking a page out of the basketball team’s new Open Gym program, the baseball coaches decided to transition to a new version of preseason conditioning as well.

“This year, we’re doing something called Open Field, where the coaches just put a bucket of balls out there and the kids are self organized and do whatever they want,” baseball coach Mike Doyle said. “Basketball does something similar with open gym so I just copied the name and called it Open Field since we’re on a field and not the gym.”

Last year the team worked a lot in the weight room to get into shape for the season ahead of them. However this year with Open Field, they are trying to do more outdoor activities on the field which are open to everybody who wants to play.

“It’s open to anybody that wants to come out and people that aren’t going to try out for baseball but just want to go out and play ball, so it’s just a chance for anybody in the school that wants to be active to get out there,” Doyle said. “If you haven’t played a lot, it’d be a good idea to take advantage of Open Field unless you’re already doing it on your own outside.”

One difference from this year’s conditioning and last years is the amount of freedom that the players have to hang out and get to know each other. This transition also encourages more people who still want to play the game but don’t end up trying out to get back into the feel of baseball.

“There’s no coaching. It’s just putting a bucket of balls out there and letting the kids go do what they’re gonna do. We’ll provide supervision to make sure they’re not being unsafe, but that’s really the extent of it,” Doyle said. “Sometimes we’ll have two pitchers and two catchers come out and our pitching coach will work with the pitchers and I’ll work with catchers.”

For players, it’s something frequent they can choose to attend for the preseason environment.

‘I’ve been going almost all the time. I’ve only missed a few of the Open Fields, however a lot of people go. I think almost everybody goes each time,” freshman Hayden Del Visco said.

This transition is something that they want to continue doing in future years starting in December and going to tryouts in the last week of January, seeing as it’s something players enjoy more. It’s a first time view to see how high school baseball compares to other leagues in the past, giving the new players a gauge for coaches to see the levels of commitment and practice the players have.

“I like what they’re doing with Open Field, because I’m getting used to fielding, catching and hitting the ball. I think it’s a good way to get prepared for trying out, so I think it’s better to do Open Field instead of just lifting weights,” Del Visco said.

Del Visco played a lot of San Carlos baseball in the past and says he’s looking forward to trying out this season.

“My goal is really just to make the team and have a good season. Do whatever it takes to help out the team and to get a win and I think Open Field is helping with that,” Del Visco said.

Most of the players seem happy with this new change to preseason conditioning since in general it makes the experience a lot more enjoyable.

“They’re a lot of fun because I haven’t seen my teammates and it’s fun to see them again. You can do whatever you think is helping you prepare for the season,” sophomore Nate Gotelli said.

Gotelli didn’t go to many of the games last season, but he’s making it part of his goal for the season to try to make more of the games. He’s still very excited to get back into the game though.

“I’m catching now this year, but I didn’t play a lot last year. However I’m playing a new position so that’s fun,” Gotelli said.

Overall, the coaches and players all seem to be pleased with the new transition to Open Field, just like how the basketball team offered their Open Gym program. The new program is a lot more inclusive and lets even players who just want to go out and play ball to have fun. They also stated that they plan to continue this program in future years due to the success.

“Come out to Open Field, it would be a good chance to be able to go throw and sometimes you just need to have somebody to throw with and that’s the advantage of Open Field,” Doyle said.