It may soon be time to brush up on the intricacies of the infield fly rule.
After years away from the diamond, a group of players and parents have sparked interest in reinvigorating the baseball program at Highlands School.
An informal meeting was held on Monday night where athletic director Brett Lamb laid out the realities of trying to start a middle school baseball team from scratch.
“Obviously, there are a lot of logistical hurdles, from finding a coach to buying all new equipment, to finding teams to schedule,” Lamb said. “But first, we have to know whether there are 12-15 students that are willing to commit to playing middle school baseball. If we don’t have enough interest from the kids it’s never going to be possible.”
Lamb, who played baseball at Highlands and later coached the team, noted that the current middle school classes are light on boys, with just eight boys entering the eighth grade later this month and seven boys entering seventh grade. But the numbers coming up in the lower grades are more promising.
“We have to think about starting a team from a sustainability standpoint, because what we do not want to do is start a team, spend a lot of money, play one year, and then fold again because the kids lose interest,” Lamb said. “We do have 20 boys entering the sixth grade and 14 in the fifth grade, so there is potential there.”
Middle school athletic teams are comprised of students in grades six through eight.
Parents in attendance asked about the timeline for putting a team on the field during the spring of 2024 and Lamb noted that he would need to know by October if a team was going to take shape.
“This would need school board approval, and with practice starting in February we would need to have a schedule in place by November so we could line up umpires, a trainer, etc.,” Lamb said. “I have spoken with a few teams. Blue Ridge, Rabun Gap, and Tallulah Falls are in our middle school conference and they have said they would play us. We could also possibly pick up a few games with Rosman and Macon Middle School if their schedules allow. For middle school, you can play 14 games maximum.”
One parent asked about roster numbers and if fielding a competitive team would be possible in year one.
“That is also something to consider, because losing is no fun and if we put a team out there and they get crushed every game, those kids may not want to play next year,” Lamb said. “The key in baseball is pitching. We would need to be sure we have at least 3-4 pitchers that can consistently throw strikes.”
One parent asked if girls are allowed to play middle school baseball, and Lamb noted that in Highlands’ case they would be, since the school does not field a softball team.
“I have seen teams with girls on their roster, we had a couple when I coached, but you have to realize in the spring you are competing with girls’ soccer and track,” Lamb said. “With our school being the size that it is, I don’t know if any girls would be interested now or not.”
Lamb took down the names and email addresses of all the parents in attendance and encouraged them to speak with their child’s classmates and their parents about possibly playing baseball. A second meeting will be held at a later date in order to get a better idea of what kind of potential roster numbers the middle school has available and if those numbers include enough pitchers to field a baseball team for the upcoming spring season.
Anyone with a student interested in playing middle school baseball can email Lamb at brett.lamb@macon.k12.nc.us for more information.