Dozens of youngsters learn more about game at no cost
By Jim Hague
When Frank Bifulco became the new head baseball coach at Kearny High School last fall, he pitched an idea that he always wanted to do.
“I wanted to be able to bridge the gap between the younger kids in town and the high school,” Bifulco said. “So I wanted to have a free clinic. It’s something I talked about with school officials for about three months.”
Last Sunday, more than 60 young baseball prospects from all different youth baseball levels attended the free clinic run by Bifulco, assistant coach Doug Gogal and several of the Kearny High School varsity players.
“There’s a lot more to learn than the basic things like hitting, fielding and catching,” Bifulco said. “When I first came back to coach as an assistant, I found that I was doing more fine tuning than teaching. Now, we have kids coming up to the varsity who need more teaching than fine tuning and we should be able to do more advanced stuff. It’s all part of a process.”
Bifulco, his staff and players all volunteered their time to help the youngsters, who got an education during their morning session.
“I learned a lot about pitching,” said 10-yearold Jack Michaels, whose older brother Ryan is a member of the Kearny varsity. “I learned how to hold the baseball and how to throw the different pitches. I’m not a pitcher yet, but I have practiced the different pitches already.”
Jack is a catcher now who plays for his father, Andy, for the Kearny VFW Little League team.
“Being a catcher is fun,” Michaels said. “I asked my father if I could be a pitcher and he said I could be next year. Baseball is my favorite sport. I like getting on base and running the bases. It’s a lot of fun and being there made me feel good. Maybe someday, I’ll throw those pitches.”
Jack Michaels aspires to be like his favorite pitcher, CC Sabathia of the Yankees.
Jordan Miranda is a 14-yearold eighth grader who hopes to become a Kearny Kardinal next year. He plays second base on a regular basis.
“I learned how to do the proper warm-up,” Miranda said. “I also learned how to use different pitches and learned about certain plays in the outfield, like what to do with the ball. If I ever need to now, I know how to pitch. This gave me a taste of what it will be like to be at Kearny High next year.”
That was what Bifulco hoped to have happened by hosting the clinic.
“One day, I hope they want to become a Kearny Kardinal,” Bifulco said. “That idea has to be important to them. It’s something they have to want to do.”
Bifulco said that he was very impressed with the turnout.
“We wanted them to keep their interest in baseball and have some fun,” Bifulco said. “I tell you what. They all had some talent and had some tools to work with. It was really exciting to see. I was glad to see some Little League coaches there, asking questions, like how to run a practice. That was refreshing that they were asking for help.”
The parents thought it was refreshing for their children to receive a chance to learn at no cost.
“You never get anything for free these days,” said Lynn Michaels, who sent sons Adam and Jack to the clinic. “I like the fact that the coaches gave back. I think it’s great. My husband said that they went over every aspect of the game and the kids learned a lot. They really enjoyed it.”
“I thought it was terrific that my sons got to work out with the high school kids,” said Tony Miranda, who sent sons Jared (age 11) and Jordan (age 14) to the clinic. “My kids were in a little awe of the high school kids. I think it was well organized and fun for the kids and I liked that. I also liked that we’re building a relationship already with the high school coaches. The fact that it was free was even better. My kids loved it and raved about it. Coach (Doug) Gogal had all the kids on their toes. It was a lot of fun for them.”
The kids agreed.
“It makes me want to play more baseball,” Jordan Miranda said.
“It was a lot of fun,” Jack Michaels said. “I can’t wait until I get the chance to play for the Kardinals one day.”
Bifulco knows that there is interest in baseball in Kearny.
“I went down to Gunnell Oval in the fall and saw 60 kids playing in a fall baseball league,” Bifulco said. “That’s incredible. I knew we needed to find a way to reach those kids. The light bulb went off to have this clinic. You can see they want to play. If we can get the kids to keep playing and keep progressing as baseball players, then this was well worth it.”
Bifulco said that the turnout keeps him optimistic and that the plans are already in the works to have future free clinics in the future.
“These kids can go right back to their regular practices now from the clinic and take what they learned to those practices,” Bifulco said. “We definitely want to keep this going.”
