Baseball practice? In these freezing conditions?
Thanks to Boston College High School, that’s the plan for youth players in the Dorchester Baseball program, who will be welcomed inside the warm confines of the high school’s Cadigan Gym starting this weekend to get into the swing of things before the spring.
BC High’s Winter Baseball Clinic is a six-week program, which starts on Feb. 1, and continues every Sunday evening from 5 to 6:30 p.m. Dorchester kids ages 9 to 12 will workout with BC High varsity baseball players and the Eagles’ coach, Steve Healy.
The plan is to tune up their hitting, fielding, throwing, and running skills, according to David Blandino, who is organizing the effort for Dorchester Baseball.
Blandino played with the league as a kid himself. Now, he’s excited for his 9-year-old son, Benny, to get to work.
“I believe kids sitting around waiting for baseball to happen and trying out for a baseball team, touching a glove for the first time in seven months, is not ideal,” Blandino said this week. “This is an opportunity for them to refresh their skills and be the true baseball versions of themselves. They are absolutely capable of being a confident baseball player with a little bit of warm-up or practice time before tryouts start.”
The clinic, which costs $60, may also be an introduction to the Dorchester Baseball community. “It’s an easy way to make new friends, it’s an easy way to have fun,” said Blandino, who also coaches multiple teams in the league. “Some of my closest longtime friends are from baseball. I would have never known them if I hadn’t played for Cedar Grove at the time. Dorchester Baseball is a combination of [what used to be] Cedar Grove and Savin Hill little league programs. I am still friends with those people to this day, and their children are now friends with my children.”
For questions and registration, reach out to dorchesterlittleleague@gmail.com.
