Marshalltown Community College head baseball coach Anthony Everman has announced the formation of an instructional Hitting League for interested area youth that will run throughout the winter months.
Everman said the purpose of the league is to provide motivated kids a local opportunity to learn and improve their hitting skills during Iowa’s cold weather months.
“Marshalltown has always been a baseball town and we want to help our area youth have resources to work on the game they love!” he said.
The league will generally run on Monday and Wednesday nights starting December 4. There will be a break for the holidays in late December before the league starts back up on Monday, January 8. Interested players ages 6 through high school seniors are welcome, however numbers will be limited due to space restrictions. “With the current renovations to our baseball facilities, we will be limited to smaller groups for the time being. We do feel starting on December 4, will give us a good starting point for the new MCC Hitting League,” Everman said.
Players will be taught proper hitting technique and will learn a specific set of drills to enhance their development. Once players have a reasonable grasp on hitting technique there will be live hitting incorporated into the instruction. Players will be divided by age with 6 to 9 hitting from 6-6:30 p.m. Players age 10 to 13 will hit from 6:30-7:15 p.m., and players age 14 to 18 will train from 7:15-8 p.m.
MCC is undergoing some facility upgrades that are in the process of being completed at this time. Once the project is completed, Everman said players will have the opportunity to expand their instructional time and incorporate throwing and fielding into the process. “When the Babe Harder Gym construction is completed, we will have opportunities to expand the Hitting League to more players and increase the amount of instruction for each session.”
Marshalltown High School’s new head baseball coach Colton Hanke said he is pleased that a local opportunity exists for players in the area.
“Our hope with this program is to provide young players with the opportunity to develop their skills and stay active,” he said. “As sessions progress, players will be able to establish and refine a work ethic that coaches look for at the high school and college levels.”
Everman said that he and his players will provide a good portion of the hitting instruction and added that this will be a chance for area coaches and players to become familiar with what MCC baseball has to offer.
“I have always been a believer in giving back to the game, and our program wants to be an asset for our baseball community,” he said.
Although he’s quite familiar with the community, having played for and graduated from MHS in 2015, Hanke said the hitting league will give him an opportunity to build relationships with youngsters and their parents.
“I’m looking forward to the chance to connect and interact with those who have an interest in something that I have had a passion for since I was a kid. This will be a great opportunity for community youth to network and improve their skills throughout the winter months so they can hit the ground running in March.”
According to Everman, cost to attend a session of the hitting league is $5 a night.
“We are looking to involve a large number of players, and we want it to be an affordable activity. Our player fee will simply pay for the facility and resources used to hold the Hitting League,” he said.
Interested youngsters or their parents can sign up by visiting the MCC Baseball website. To reserve a slot for a hitting session, click on the “HITTING LEAGUE” tab in the upper right-hand corner of the MCC Baseball page (https://mccathletics.com/sports/bsb/Hitting_League).
Payment will be expected at the beginning of your session. You may sign up for multiple sessions within the link, but payment for all of your hitting reservations will be due prior to the first hitting session you attend.
Available hitting sessions following the holiday break will be posted by December 29. Direct any questions or comments to coach Everman at anthony.everman@iavalley.edu.