My Time at the Indianapolis

Official Little League Baseball Camp

 

By Micah Baum, former camper & current WMLL player

 

The camp facilities are really nice. There is a big two-story dorm, with ten bedrooms, a TV room, two bathrooms, and a laundry room. The camp provides pillows, blankets, and bed sheets. Each of the rooms holds 10-15 campers, and two coaches. For free time, the camp has a pool, tennis courts, a ping-pong pavilion, and basketball courts.

 

The camp provides three meals a day of hot, cooked food. For breakfast there is usually one hot dish (pancakes or eggs), toast, fruit, cereal, and pastries. For lunch and dinner, there is one main dish like pizza or hot dogs, one side dish (potatoes, dumplings, etc.), fruit and vegetables, and dessert. There is always enough food for seconds.

 

At baseball camp, all the campers are divided up into teams named after major-league baseball teams. I was on the Yankees. Each of the teams in the older division (11-12 yrs.) play one or two games against each of the other teams in their division, depending on the number of teams. The same is true for the younger division (9-10 yrs.) The games are structured in a non-competitive way, so, even if a kid isn’t a very good pitcher, but wants to try it, he’ll get to. We play as many innings as we can get in; sometimes we’ll play eight or nine innings!

 
Wake-up is at 7:30. Breakfast is at eight. After breakfast, we go to the tennis courts for stretching, and then we do two hours of station-work. There are five stations: hitting, pitching/catching, fielding, base running, and a miscellaneous station. After stations, at 11:00, we eat lunch. After lunch, from 12-3, it’s free time. At 3:15, we play our first game, which lasts until 5:00. At 5, we have dinner. At 6:30, our second game starts, and that goes until 8:30. Then, we have canteen, where campers can buy candy or drinks. Until 10:00, we have free time. At 10:15, it’s lights-out.

 

At the camp, there are at least five or six counselors that have played pro baseball. The assistant director, Coach O’Deet, played for the Red Sox Double-A team, with players now in the majors. The counselors give you instruction you can’t get from any little league coach. They really know what they’re doing!

 

I really recommend this camp for anyone that wants to get better at baseball, or just go there to have a good time. This is one of the best baseball sleep-away camps in the Midwest.