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Camp draws some big names
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REXBURG -- In the midst of winter, there was a reminder on Friday that summer isn't too far off.
Madison Baseball is holding a two-day camp this weekend at Madison High School as a fundraiser to help make improvements to the school's baseball field.
And organizers of the event went all out to make this an event worth attending.
Matt Lindstrom of the Florida Marlins and Clayton Mortensen of the St. Louis Cardinals organization were joined by Billy Butler of the Kansas City Royals as the featured guests at the two-day event.
"It's going well," Lindstrom said. "In the morning session, we had a lot of younger kids that were paying attention. It's fun to be out here. I see a lot of potential in these kids."
And Mortensen echoes Lindstrom's sentiments.
"All of these kids have potential," Mortensen said. "We're just trying to help them on their way. This is great. Mr. (Gary) Evans and Mr. (Colin) Yancey asked us if we would come by and talk to them."
At the beginning of the afternoon session, the three players stood in front of a crowd of roughly 75 youth and encouraged them to work hard and not give up on their dreams.
"Baseball will open a lot of opportunities and a lot of doors," Butler said.
Lindstrom and Mortensen are both from Rexburg and grew up playing in the Madison Baseball program. Butler is from Florida originally, but spent time playing for the Idaho Falls Chukars. Butler's wife is also from southeastern Idaho.
In addition to helping with the camp on Friday, Lindstrom will also be busy over the next two months as he has been selected to play in the World Baseball Classic as a member of Team USA. The World Baseball Classic will take place in March.
"It was like an early Christmas present," Lindstrom said of his selection to the team.
As for the camp, participants were taught all facets of the game with tips being passed on from the likes of baseball legends Tony La Russa, Dave Duncan and Andre Dawson.
Lindstrom offers advice to those who hope to some day follow in his foot steps.
"Keep playing and have fun," he said. "Be better than the competition and stand out."
The final day of the camp will be today from 9 a.m. to noon and 1 to 5 p.m.
In 2008, Lindstrom appeared in 66 games for Florida, pitching 57.1 innings. He finished with a 3-3 record with five saves and a 3.14 ERA. He gave up 21 runs on 57 hits with 43 strikeouts and 26 walks.
Butler finished the 2008 season with a .275 batting average for Kansas City. He played in 124 games, hitting 11 home runs and 55 RBI. He had 122 hits on the season.
In 2008, Mortensen split time between AA Springfield and AAA Memphis in the Cardinals organization. He finished with a 5-6 record for Memphis and a 5.51 ERA in 15 games. He pitched 80 innings in those 15 games, striking out 57 and walking 42.
MARK JONES
mjones@uvsj.com
Madison Baseball is holding a two-day camp this weekend at Madison High School as a fundraiser to help make improvements to the school's baseball field.
And organizers of the event went all out to make this an event worth attending.
Matt Lindstrom of the Florida Marlins and Clayton Mortensen of the St. Louis Cardinals organization were joined by Billy Butler of the Kansas City Royals as the featured guests at the two-day event.
"It's going well," Lindstrom said. "In the morning session, we had a lot of younger kids that were paying attention. It's fun to be out here. I see a lot of potential in these kids."
And Mortensen echoes Lindstrom's sentiments.
"All of these kids have potential," Mortensen said. "We're just trying to help them on their way. This is great. Mr. (Gary) Evans and Mr. (Colin) Yancey asked us if we would come by and talk to them."
At the beginning of the afternoon session, the three players stood in front of a crowd of roughly 75 youth and encouraged them to work hard and not give up on their dreams.
"Baseball will open a lot of opportunities and a lot of doors," Butler said.
Lindstrom and Mortensen are both from Rexburg and grew up playing in the Madison Baseball program. Butler is from Florida originally, but spent time playing for the Idaho Falls Chukars. Butler's wife is also from southeastern Idaho.
In addition to helping with the camp on Friday, Lindstrom will also be busy over the next two months as he has been selected to play in the World Baseball Classic as a member of Team USA. The World Baseball Classic will take place in March.
"It was like an early Christmas present," Lindstrom said of his selection to the team.
As for the camp, participants were taught all facets of the game with tips being passed on from the likes of baseball legends Tony La Russa, Dave Duncan and Andre Dawson.
Lindstrom offers advice to those who hope to some day follow in his foot steps.
"Keep playing and have fun," he said. "Be better than the competition and stand out."
The final day of the camp will be today from 9 a.m. to noon and 1 to 5 p.m.
In 2008, Lindstrom appeared in 66 games for Florida, pitching 57.1 innings. He finished with a 3-3 record with five saves and a 3.14 ERA. He gave up 21 runs on 57 hits with 43 strikeouts and 26 walks.
Butler finished the 2008 season with a .275 batting average for Kansas City. He played in 124 games, hitting 11 home runs and 55 RBI. He had 122 hits on the season.
In 2008, Mortensen split time between AA Springfield and AAA Memphis in the Cardinals organization. He finished with a 5-6 record for Memphis and a 5.51 ERA in 15 games. He pitched 80 innings in those 15 games, striking out 57 and walking 42.
MARK JONES
mjones@uvsj.com
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