Nearly 200 student-athletes from public schools in Baguio City and nearby Benguet Province gathered for a two-day grassroots baseball and softball clinic, an initiative aimed at honing fundamental skills and creating future educational opportunities.
The Baguio City Little League Baseball and Softball Clinic, held Sept. 26-27 at Bonifacio Elementary School and the Melvin Jones Ground, brought together young players, teachers, trainers and local sports advocates.
The weekend training featured expert instruction from La Salle Green Hills Manila coaches, led by Patrick Santos with assistants Dante Dela Calzada, Alfredo Olivares Jr., Deck De Leon and Christian Galedo, a former member of the Philippine national team.
Organizers said the visiting coaches’ dedication and experience helped inspire the young athletes to deepen their love for the game.
The event was spearheaded and supported by Department of Education coaches and umpires, including Alejo Pacalso, Jackson Caya-os, Ramil Estioko and Rafael Lapeña.
For the organizers, the weekend was about much more than fielding ground balls and hitting line drives.
“Our goal is not only to develop skilled baseball and softball players but also to use sports as a pathway toward education, character development and future opportunities. Together, we can help our young athletes train hard, study well, dream big and make Baguio proud,” Lapeña said.
The clinic highlighted the power of community partnership, bridging local and Manila-based institutions thru the collaborative effort involving La Salle Green Hills, DepEd Baguio, the Baguio City Summer Capital of the Philippines Little League, and the University of the Cordilleras baseball and softball teams, headed by Danilo Cong-o and supported by the Baguio City Sports Office, led by Honorio Yamoyam and Ely Rose Nazareno.
Organizers emphasized that the clinic represents a unified vision — dubbed “One Team, One Goal” — to transform grassroots sports programs into reliable avenues for college scholarships, demonstrating what is possible when schools, parents and sports organizations work together. NLMonitor
