Baseball teaches great lessons for life.
That’s what Anthony “Coach” Mase believes. Mase, who volunteered at the Badges for Baseball camp earlier this summer, said the game is “the great equalizer.” “You don’t have to be the most talented, it’s not about height,” he said. “As long as you hustle and work, you’re going to do well.”
About 70 boys and girls between the ages of 10 and 14 participated in the camp at Laurel Springs Park where they learned baseball basics and fundamentals from players with the College of Southern Maryland CSM Hawks and Charles County Sheriff’s officers.
The sheriff’s office has hosted the camp for the last eight years. “It’s a summer program for youth outreach,” said Kurt Burger, the school resource officer at Henry E. Lackey High School. “And to get them interested in baseball.”
Brandon Remalia, a coach at CSM who played for North Point High School and at the college, volunteered to help younger players. “It’s for the love of the game,” he said. “It’s all about having fun.”
Logan Brown, a seventh grader at John Hanson Middle School, has been playing baseball for six years. He’s come a long way since T-ball. “It’s a very interesting game,” he said, adding that camps like Badges for Baseball help keep his skills sharp. He considers it a continuing education of sorts. “There are so many rules you have to understand,” Brown said.