TAMPA, Fla. — Major League Baseball spring training may not start on time, but what will be on time is the Sandlot Tour, a nationally-touring baseball camp hosted by Coach Ballgame.
The first of the 22 stops is Friday in Tampa.
“First rule of ‘Sandlot,’ you got to have a nickname,” James Lowe, as known as Coach Ballgame, told ABC Action News sports anchor Kyle Burger. “Second rule of ‘Sandlot,’ you got to tuck your shirt in. The third rule of ‘Sandlot,’ we got to have outrageous amounts of fun.”
Lowe runs these camps for kids starting at the age of six years old.
“We don’t keep score,” Lowe said. “The wins and losses don’t really matter. Building skills, yes it matters, but it’s down the priority list.”
Lowe played college ball at Brown University, majoring in Theater. He got into coaching in 2005. A few years ago he partnered with MLB to run their “Play Ball” camps, but because of the pandemic, those shutdown. So he started his own camp known as the “Sandlot Tour.”
“Let’s find a neighborhood park, there are tons of them that are empty,” he said. “Let’s throw some bases down and let’s play.”
Coach Ballgame’s camps are all about fun. He brings props, the occasional celebrity guest, and wears costumes to get kids engaged in the game of baseball.
“Whenever they hit the ball, the drum means to run,” Lowe said. “I’m banging on this drum. The on-deck batter is banging on this conga drum, it brings this life, this fun energy to the baseball field. This isn’t a game, this is a party.”
Click here for more information on his stops in Tampa and Palmetto.
