Florida League Pitching & Hitting Clinic
In conjunction with the 5th Annual Celebrity Golf Tournament, the Florida League held an exclusive pitching & hitting clinic on Sunday November 11th featuring current and former MLB players and coaches. Only 50 spots were available, and the participants received personal pitching and hitting instruction from the Major Leaguers.
Former NFL linebacker and Super Bowl Champion Kawika Mitchell, owner of Competitor Gym in Maitland, got the kids warmed up with a professional style pre-game workout.
Hitting instructors included 2012 NL Manager of the Year Davey Johnson and Nationals hitting coach Rick Eckstein.
Pitching instructors included former Cy Young winner Frank Viola and Jim Hickey, the Tampa Bay Rays pitching coach.
After the clinic, both Davey and Hunter gave talks to the kids about baseball, achieving goals and working hard.
A special meet and greet and autograph session was available ater the clinic as well.
Overall, the day was a great success. A special thanks goes to all of our participating celebrity instructors:
Hitting Instructors
Davey Johnson - Manager of the Washington Nationals, 2012 MLB Manager of the Year
Hunter Pence - San Francisco Giants Outfielder, 2012 World Series Champion
Rick Eckstein - Hitting Coach of the Washington Nationals
Dave Clark - Former MLB Outfielder, Houston Astros 1st Base Coach
Ozzie Timmons - Former MLB Outfielder
John Castino - Former MLB Infielder. '79 AL Rookie of the Year
J.R. House - Former MLB catcher, Hitting Coach of the Missoula Osprey (Rookie League, Diamondbacks)
Tomas Nido - 2012 8th Round draft pick of the New York Mets
Pitching Instructors
Frank Viola - Former MLB All-Star, '88 AL Cy Young Award Winner.
Jim Hickey - Pitching Coach for the Tampa Bay Rays.
Stan Boroski - Bullpen Coach for the Tampa Bay Rays.