YOUTH : ORANGE : Teamwork a Focus of Baseball Academy

Little Leaguers and school baseball players eager to improve their skills will have an opportunity to practice their favorite sport full time for a week at the California Baseball Academy.

The 4-year-old camp--offered by Steve Gullotti, for 13 years baseball coach at El Dorado High School in Placentia--will take place in two-week sessions this summer at Chapman University.

Along with pitching, batting and fielding techniques, Gullotti will teach students the proper attitude with which to play the game.

“Because the game is so slow, it’s a failure-oriented sport. If you make a mistake, everyone knows it. It can be a humiliating game,” Gullotti said. “We want the kids to learn the benefits of teamwork and overcome the failure aspects of the sport.”

“The mental aspects of the game are addressed as much as its physical aspects,” Gullotti said. “We want the kids to say positive, not negative things to their teammates. We all make mistakes.”

Each student’s play is videotaped and coaches offer individual evaluation of their strengths and weaknesses. Parents of participating children are given a report card on their child’s progress at the end of the week.

The camp is open to both girls and boys ages 8 to 16. The California Baseball Academy will be offered the weeks of July 26-30 and Aug. 2-6. The cost varies from $245 to $395, depending on whether the student attends just during the day or participates in nighttime events and sleeps on campus. For further information, call (714) 524-1149.

Chapman University will also offer other sports programs for children, including a basketball day camp and a basketball overnight camp. The weeklong basketball camps are open to boys and girls ages 7 to 14. Several sessions are offered during the summer months. For further information, call (714) 997-6691.