Diamond Dog Christmas Camp set for Saturday, December 7

Gardner-Webb Baseball head baseball coach Rusty Stroupe has announced the date for the Diamond Dog Baseball Christmas Camp. It will be held at Crest High School on Saturday, December 7. There will be a morning session from 9 a.m. to 12:30 for grades 1 to 6, and an afternoon session from 1 p.m. to 4:30 for grades 7 and up. Camp will feature opportunities to receive pitching instruction, hitting instruction, and defensive work at the catcher, infield, and outfield positions. Staff will include Gardner-Webb head coach Rusty Stroupe and pitching coach Ray Greene. Crest High School coach Stephen Hodge will serve as an instructor as well. Special guest instructor for the camp is former GWU All-Star and current major league baseball player Blake Lalli. Blake recently signed a free agent contract with the Arizona Diamondbacks after spending parts of the last two seasons in the major leagues as a catcher with the Chicago Cubs and Milwaukee Brewers. Blake will be working with catchers and providing hitting instruction during the camp. 

Former GWU star Blake Lalli recently signed with the Arizona Diamondbacks

For those who wish to participate, there is no pre-registration form. Simply send an email to rstroupe@gardner-webb.edu or call 704-406-4421and indicate the participant's name, age, and name of school if you are a high school or middle school player. The $40 fee can be paid on the day of camp. If you sign up for camp and determine later that you won't be able to attend, for planning purposes please send an email to indicate that you won't be attending.

Also, slightly used Demarini BBCOR baseball bats will be on sale for $60 at camp. These are the bats required for high school use. Sizes will include 32, 33, and 34 ounce bats while supplies last. Hats, GWU baseball t-shirts, and adult size GWU game jerseys will also be on sale that day.

IMPORTANT INFO:

What to wear and what to bring- Wear what you feel comfortable wearing whether that's your uniform, sweat pants and sweat shirt or whatever. Bring a hat and if you bring spikes, please also bring flat shoes to wear in the indoor cage. Bring your glove and if you have a bat, make sure it is marked with your name. Bring a batting helmet if you have one as well.

Where to go- Both the morning and afternoon sessions of camp will take place at the Crest High School baseball field in Boiling Springs.

How to pay- Please do not pay in advance. You can pay the $40 fee in cash or by check on the day of camp. Checks should be made out to Diamond Dog Baseball.

What to do if there is inclement weather- Because Crest has indoor cages, camp will likely take place regardless of the weather. But if you have concerns, check www.gwubaseball.blogspot.com the day before the camp for weather updates. If there is no update, then camp will be held as scheduled. 

Schedule- Camp will begin with proper stretching and warm-up and quickly move to defensive position work. Pitchers will each throw a bullpen at some point and catchers will catch those bullpens while receiving instruction. Infielders and outfielders will be on the main field doing drills during that time. Afterward, any participant who wants to hit will have the opportunity for drill work in the cages and live hitting on the field. Those who wish to only concentrate on pitching will be able to continue to work with a pitching instructor for drills, techniques, etc. during the hitting sessions.

Diamond Dog Camp for Summer 2013

Scoreboard after GWU's upset victory over South Carolina

Players celebrate victory over South Carolina after last out recorded

The dates for Diamond Dog Baseball Camp for the summer of 2013 will be Tuesday, June 18 and Thursday, June 20. Camp will be $40 per day and campers are welcomed to attend both days. The June 18 session will emphasize hitting and will mainly include hitting drills, stations, and situations throughout the day but will also include proper warm up and throwing skills. The June 20 session will emphasize throwing and fielding mechanics as well as specific defensive positions (pitchers, catchers, infielders, and outfielders). Participants will be able to rotate to different defensive positions to learn more than one. In the afternoon, there will be game situations and hitting stations as well.

Diamond Dog camp will take place on the Gardner-Webb campus at John Henry Moss Stadium/Bill Masters Field.

Cost: $40 for each day
Time: 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
(Break for lunch from noon to 1 p.m.)
*Parents can take camper to lunch or leave money for fast food nearby- coaches will accompany
Ages: those who have completed 1st grade up to those who have completed 8th grade
Staff will include Gardner-Webb coaches and local high school and middle school coaches

Hats and T-shirts will be available for purchase at each of the sessions but are not included in the price.

There is no pre-registration form or pre-payment necessary for camp this year. However, you must notify us by email (rstroupe@gardner-webb.edu) or by phone (704-406-4421) in advance in order to participate. Please indicate name and grade completed and the dates you are planning to attend. CAMPERS WILL BE DIVIDED INTO AGE APPROPRIATE GROUPS DURING CAMP. For those who are in middle school, you will mainly be with other players your age. Campers should bring baseball shoes as well as flat turf shoes or tennis shoes, for use in the indoor batting cages. Bring a glove and a hat and wear what you would normally wear for a baseball game. If you bring a bat, please have it clearly marked with your name on it to prevent confusion. Water will be available but campers are welcomed to bring water bottles and gatorade, etc. if they wish. 

GWU Hitting Camp for January 19 cancelled

Unfortunately the Hitting Camp scheduled for Saturday, January 19 has been cancelled. Due to a solid week of rain the game field is saturated with water. And with the approach of a winter weather system, we do not feel like the camp would be of high enough quality to conduct using only indoor cages. We won’t be able to reschedule due to official practice beginning next week for our team. We apologize for any inconvenience this cancellation may have caused.  

For those players 8th grade and below, if you are interested in pursuing some hitting options, Kyle Sprague, one of our assistant coaches, is hosting group hitting lessons and a hitting competition. Below are the dates and prices for those events:

Group Lessons:

Saturday, January 26

10 a.m. to 11 a.m.

$20 per player

First 6 participants to sign up

Drills will be same as GWU players do on a daily basis

Thursday, January 31

6 p.m. to 7 p.m.

$20 per player

First 6 participants to sign up

Hitting Competition

Thursday, January 24

5:15 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.

$15 per player

First 10 participants to sign up

For more information on any of these events, please visit www.diamonddogbaseballacademy.webs.com

Coach Sprague is also available for private lessons for those who are interested. He can be contacted at kjsprague1@gmail.com