Baseball has been around longer than any of us. It was invented before the Wright Brothers were born. We have had 33 Presidents since Abner Doubleday was incorrectly given credit for its invention. More people attend baseball games than any other major sport. Yet, it is a game that is really only truly appreciated by those who love the smell of peanut shells on the ground, the sound of wood on ball and the feeling of accomplishment when you brush dirt off of a uniform.

Baseball is a game of tradition. It is a game of numbers and constant argument. There is the never-ending argument of who is the greatest player of all time or which was the greatest team of all time. Unlike any other sport, there is a real possibility where the answer to both of those questions could go back almost 100 years.

Although more heavily invested in tradition than any other, it is a game that has seen changes due to the highly competitive nature of the sport. Mickey Mantle and Willie Mays never dreamed of playing baseball in December. The off-season was a time of relaxation and recharging the batteries for the upcoming season. Spring Training was for getting in shape and losing that 15 pounds of winter overindulgence.

It doesn’t matter what level of baseball you play today, it is no longer a sport that you forget about for six months. To compete today at the highest level, continual improvement is necessary if you are 9, 19 or 29. Winter baseball camps, fall baseball leagues, individual training and year long workout regimens are today’s answer to a six-month break.

With that in mind, it is not unusual to have off-season baseball camps spring up at every high school, college and baseball practice facility around the country. Yet, all camps are not created equally. Most facilities under staff and are more worried about how much money they will make verses how much they will instruct. High Schools typically use their own ball players as their chief instructors and most colleges really only use it as a scouting service for whom they will recruit in the next two years.

Tony Vittorio’s winter baseball camp at the University of Dayton breaks that mold. There isn’t a current player to be found, the student/instructor ratio is less than ten to one and every participant is treated equally. It doesn’t matter if you are a high school All-American or a struggling 8-year-old recreational player; you are there to learn about baseball and about life.

Vittorio has a long history in the coaching profession and utilizes his many contacts to put together a staff that can not only teach every facet of the game but also relate to young people. His staff includes his three assistants, Todd Linklater, Jason Frazier and Terry Bell, Cory Allen (Olney Central Junior College Assistant), Dan Ochs (Colorado State University at Pueblo Assistant), Mark Pieper (Assistant Baseball Coach, Franklin High School, Indiana) and John Rigney (past Head Baseball Coach Batesville, Indiana High School). It is a group that is not only well versed in baseball, but also in life.

Every player comes to this camp expecting to learn about baseball and they certainly receive both group and individual instruction. It is a camp that is run with a timetable. Every activity is planned and the camp runs like a finely tuned machine. Each four-hour day is charted with precision to insure that every camper receives instruction in all aspects of the game.

There are five stations with rotating campers every 15 to 45 minutes. Each young ball player is given he freedom to spend quality time with an instructor for his favorite position. With three days available, a camper can improve his game at three different positions or just concentrate on one. It is a camp designed for the camper, not the other way around.

The camper comes thinking baseball, baseball, baseball. What he leaves with is much more. Baseball is a microcosm of life. The things that we learn in baseball can help us both on and off the field. This is not something that is lost on the instructors and they make it their goal to not only change the swing and fielding skills of each camper, but also change the way they view life.

In his opening talk to the campers, Vittorio makes his first point a small but important one, how a ball player is to wear his hat. It is not to be worn backwards, it is not to be worn sideways, it is not to be worn propped on top of your head. There is a way that a real ballplayer wears his hat and that is just the beginning of the transformation.

The three F’s continue the life instruction as Vittorio begins a discussion that is pounded home the next day by Pieper. Faith, family and friendship are the foundation of a fruitful life. It is only when we concentrate on these three issues that we can be the person that we can be. Being a good baseball player is one thing, but being a complete person is the crescendo that we should all strive for.

Pieper concludes his life lesson with a message that lets each of the young men know that they are going to school for a reason and that reason is not just to play baseball. They are there to learn and to excel in the classroom. Vittorio reiterates that belief when he brags more about the GPA of his baseball players than he does their batting average

Each day is filled with life lessons as several members of the staff are given an opportunity to share a piece of their life to the campers. Although it is easy to tell that each of these coaches love the game of baseball, it is just as easy to see that they feel that they are more than pitchers and catchers.

There is something special about throwing a baseball in the middle of winter when most kids are throwing snowballs. The 75 campers came looking to become better baseball players and they did not leave feeling unfulfilled. What they got as a bonus has the potential to stick with them long after they throw that last pitch or hit that last home run. If they use what they learn in this camp, they might become a person that can make a difference in the lives of others.