*This article was originally published on Alberta Dugout Stories on January 23, 2024. You can read it here.

January 24, 2024

By Joe McFarland

Alberta Dugout Stories

Everyone had their reasons for smiling on a cold Saturday just outside Calgary.

On the indoor field at Webber Academy, young baseball players were enjoying the drills and mini-games being played at the Blue Jays Academy Youth Instructional Clinic.

Perched above, parents of those athletes were revelling at the sight of Blue Jays heroes like Ernie Whitt, Buck Martinez, Pat Borders and Devon White coaching their kids alongside Women’s National Team legend Ashley Stephenson.

Even local product and former Major League Baseball (MLB) hurler Chris Reitsma, who also served as one of the coaches, couldn’t stop grinning.

“You’re looking at Pat Borders and Devon White and I’m telling them stories about being in high school watching them play and win the World Series,” he said. “That’s fun because I’m still a fan and a kid at heart.”

As renovations at Rogers Centre continue, the Blue Jays Academy was looking to move its annual National Coaches Clinic.

And when they called Reitsma, who is now Webber’s senior director of baseball operations, he says it was a no-brainer to host it along with Baseball Alberta.

AN ENTHUSIASTIC BUNCH

While most of the weekend was dedicated to the coaches, the youth clinic was the first big event for the special guests.

Dozens of young athletes were put through the paces over the three hours with hitting, base-running and fielding drills before a fungo game to the end the clinic.

“The support we have from the whole country is great,” White said. “When we have the opportunity to give back to the young kids, in such a great facility and we’re not outside, it’s great.”

With the temperature in the minus-teens most of the weekend, it was noted that baseball has come a long way in this province and country where indoor facilities allow for training year-round.

“It’s awesome because you can see the enthusiasm of the youngsters here and I think that’s the biggest thing that we all get out of it,” said Martinez.

“All of us who have played the game, love the game obviously, and whenever we can give back to younger people and give them an opportunity to enjoy playing a little bit more by giving them some fundamental aspects of how you play the game, it might make it more enjoyable for them as they get back on the field.”

After the on-field clinic wrapped up, the players posed for a big group photo with their high-profile instructors before running around to snag autographs and a few selfies.

The day was just beginning for the guests, as they would then turn their attention to the National Coaches Clinic in the afternoon.

KEEP THE ACTION GOING

Over the course of six hours, clinic participants from around Alberta and across Canada were able to hear presentations from each of the six guest speakers.

It was an all-encompassing clinic, with each speaker zeroing in on a particular aspect of the game that they specialized in during their playing and coaching careers.

However, a few common themes started to creep into each of their presentations.

Stephenson’s focus was on infielding, but she says coaches need to keep everyone involved and moving so they aren’t stuck twiddling their thumbs.

“It’s not just about infielding but about how you can implement it into a really good practice plan so that people are moving all the time,” said the Baseball Canada Women’s National Team and Vancouver Canadians coach.

“Kids are getting more touches on the ball and more reps and stuff like that, and they’re not standing in line and watching for a good portion.”

Borders, meantime, believes coaches need to embrace each individual player for who they are both mentally and physically.

“Don’t try to change them and put them into a cookie-cutter style of hitting, style of catching, style of pitching,” he said. “The more you try to do that, the more people you eliminate, so let the kids expose what their abilities are and get the most out of that.”

TRYING IT ALL

The coaches all agree that it’s also important for coaches to give every kid a chance to play every position, even if it looks like they excel at one spot or another.

While it might be good for wins, the approach doesn’t bode well for athletic development.

“We see it an awful lot in kids where the best players are your shortstop and your pitcher – and that’s all they learn,” said Martinez. “I think we’ve learned that if you teach your shortstop how to play third base and second base, they will understand those positions and maybe understand a little bit more about being a good teammate.”

Stephenson agrees, saying it also allows for players to fill holes when others aren’t able to make it to practices or games.

“We talk all the time about baseball IQ or whatever sport you’re playing,” she said. “But if I’m playing shortstop all the time, I don’t necessarily know first base responsibilities or second base responsibilities or outfield.”

“The more positions you play, the more you learn and understand the game and then more of an asset you become.”

And it wasn’t just different positions on the field, but the coaches also agree that playing different sports is beneficial for those who want to become more well-rounded athletes while also avoiding major injuries from repetition.

Borders, who began his professional baseball career in Medicine Hat after being drafted by the Blue Jays in 1982, was originally a third baseman who transformed into a catcher later in his career.

He also played football and basketball growing up.

“If you limit yourself and put yourself into a little hole, you’re negating any kind of future athletic movements that could benefit you in a different sport, maybe,” said the 17-year MLB backstop.

“I guarantee that if you put someone on a hockey rink and you bring them out to baseball, there’s going to be something that makes them a better baseball player and vice versa.”

ALWAYS LEARNING

Apart from the on-field tips and tricks that the guest coaches were hoping to impart on those in attendance, they were also able to provide some life lessons.

From their own beginnings in sport and their respective rises to national teams and World Series championships, they say it’s important for coaches today to let kids be kids while showing them what the game can give them – including the old adage that baseball is a game of failure.

“Nowadays, kids aren’t used to failure,” said White, who remains a coach in the Blue Jays farm system.

“We fail, but we have to find out why we fail and how to get out of the slump or the failure and not just give up – and kids today need to get a little push and that’s where the coaching comes in.”

Even for baseball lifers like Reitsma, as much as he was there as the host and speaker, he also wanted to be a sponge.

During the youth clinic, he was seen in deep conversations with Whitt, White and Borders, while he managed to have a long conversation with Stephenson as soon as the kids headed to the exits.

“In this game, no matter what you’ve done, where you’ve been or what you’ve been a part of, you’re always learning,” he said with a grin. “That’s one thing I’ve learned – it’s important to ask questions.”

There’s no question those in attendance for the Blue Jays Academy National Coaches Clinic took a lot away from the weekend at Webber Academy, including smiles.

Tune into the new Alberta Dugout Stories: The Podcast on January 25 as we will bring you the conversations we had during the clinic.