Thomas Jefferson youth baseball clinic a hit

Officials initially discussed holding the inaugural Thomas Jefferson youth baseball clinic in the spring.

However, due to covid restrictions the event was pushed back to a later date — Aug. 29.

And it proved to be a thundering hit.

The inaugural day-long clinic took place at Andrew Reilly Memorial Park with 77 registrants between the ages of 5-12.

The morning session took place for youngsters 5 to 8; the afternoon session was for ages 9 to 12.

The planning committee for the event consisted of Kelli Haberman, Dawn Szarmach, Kristen Putigiano and Barb Warden.

TJ coach Tim Vickers and some of his assistants were present at the park, but TJ’s high school baseball players primarily ran the show.

“This is something coach Vickers and I have been discussing doing for a couple years,” Haberman said. “We plan to make this an annual event in the spring, and we’re approaching this as a service opportunity and ‘give back’ to the community.

“This is an opportunity for our boys to teach and mentor future TJ ball players.”

Some of the annual goals are for participants to have a great time while learning and/or developing their baseball skills, and also to make it a learning experience for the high school athletes.

“This clinic will (help) develop our boys as leaders and role models for the youth of our community,” Haberman said.

The entire TJ baseball program — freshmen through seniors — primarily conducted the clinic. It was led by two seniors, outfielder Brady Haberman and infielder Jaxson Szarmach.

“I was very excited to start our annual youth baseball clinic this year,” Vickers said. “One of my main goals when making the move (as coach) from Steel Valley to Thomas Jefferson was to start from the grass roots. Our freshman, junior varsity and varsity players have been wanting to contribute to the future of their program for years now, and I am proud to lead them as they give back to the TJ youth.”

Varsity team members slated to help out on the day of the event were Haberman, Szarmach, Ryan Sluk, McClain Flinn, Angelo Volomino, Lance Vickers, Brody Evans and Elias Lippincott.

“I think the clinic went exceptionally well,” Haberman said. “I know everyone there had a good time despite the heat. The kids loved being drafted, making sure each one got the spotlight. They were all so eager to learn from a TJ player and imagined themselves in our shoes one day.

“After four, almost five years, in this program, I’m proud to have had a leadership role in giving back to the community and start something that will be held for years to come.”

Szarmach echoed his teammate’s comments.

“I thought the clinic was a huge success,” Szarmach said, “not only for our baseball organization but for the community as a whole. My teammates and I truly enjoyed working with the younger kids in the community. The main highlight in my eyes was being able to see the kids improve their baseball skills while also having a blast.

“Even though I am a senior, I had a great time teaching the younger kids and hope our baseball organization can put this clinic together every year.”

Others who assisted included the Jaguars’ junior varsity team members, consisting of T.J. Bucy, Dom Putignano, Alec Warden, J.J. Siemon, Brady McGough, Brady Hodge, Michael Trklja and Cody Karcher, the newest team member.

The freshman squad last season consisted of Mauro Salimbene, Sam Winters, Damian Bosco, Andrew Yeschenko, Carter Kirsch, Ethan Steinmetz, Christian Villa, Tyler Lesko and Noah Kaszer.