University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
Photo by: UNC Asheville
Inaugural Maybin Mission Youth Camp Draws Large Crowd to Greenwood Field
01.21.2017 | Baseball
ASHEVILLE, N.C. – Having the chance to meet a professional player and learn from them is something that every young athlete, no matter the sport or age, can relish, and on the morning of Saturday, Jan. 21, over 175 local boys and girls had the opportunity to learn about baseball not only from a successful Major League Baseball player, they got the chance to learn from one of their own: Asheville native and Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim outfielder Cameron Maybin.
Maybin, who has made stops with the Detroit Tigers and Atlanta Braves after growing up in Asheville, brought his first-ever Maybin Mission Youth Camp to Greenwood Stadium on the campus of UNC Asheville Saturday morning in conjunction with the UNC Asheville baseball program. The camp is aimed at offering boys and girls of Asheville a chance to cultivate an even deeper appreciation for the game while also building character and learning patience.
UNC Asheville head baseball coach Scott Friedholm is more than happy to have someone of Maybin's profile come to campus to help develop an even better relationship with the younger players and their families and the community.
"I can't tell you who's having the most fun today, but that's what make these events so special," Friedholm said. "When you have a guy like Cameron Maybin and his stature probably having more fun than anybody else out here, it just brings an energy to this field and you can see it on the kids' faces and even in our own players. They're just having a good time and that's what we hoped for with this."
For Maybin, the decision to team up with the Bulldogs as well as his hometown was an easy one. And his mission with the camp is simple.
"I want to provide something to the youth of this community and I love being around baseball and teaching the fundamentals of baseball," Maybin said. "Through baseball you learn so much more. It builds character, it builds patience. And letting the community know that I want to help these kids build and develop as well as develop these relationships with UNC Asheville and put on more things in the community. This is just the beginning of it all and it's going really well. I'm excited."
Saturday morning's camp offered five different stations: pitching, hitting, base running, infield and outfield. After warming up, the campers were broken up into five groups and rotated through each station. Along the way, those in attendance had the chance to not only learn and work from Maybin himself, but also from the Bulldog baseball players helping man the camp. That is something that older players like Maybin can look back on as they get older.
"One camp that left an impression on me was a camp at Western Carolina," said Maybin. "It was back when Charles Thomas was going there and it was the first opportunity I had to meet Charles and from then on, I grew a bigger love for the game. Just being around the college guys as a kid is great. I think for these kids it's not just exciting for them to be around me, but around these college guys, older baseball players. You can see it."
Maybin didn't always have the opportunity to attend camps like the one put on Saturday morning, and that is why he hopes that this year is just the first of many for his camp.
"I wasn't as fortunate to have something like this. I did a lot of one-on-one work with my dad," Maybin said. "So, this is special for me to be able to put on something like this year-in and year-out, especially with this being the first year and developing that relationship with UNC Asheville to give these kids the opportunity that I didn't have and that's to take advantage of these types of camps."
While the camp offered a chance for the kids to learn, it was also just as important for Maybin and the Bulldog players. It gave them a chance to take a break before the grueling seasons begin in a couple weeks. For UNC Asheville, practices start Friday, and soon they will be tackling a 56-game schedule from February to May. Maybin will report for Spring Training on Feb. 17 and will then begin his grueling 162-game schedule.
Maybin, who has made stops with the Detroit Tigers and Atlanta Braves after growing up in Asheville, brought his first-ever Maybin Mission Youth Camp to Greenwood Stadium on the campus of UNC Asheville Saturday morning in conjunction with the UNC Asheville baseball program. The camp is aimed at offering boys and girls of Asheville a chance to cultivate an even deeper appreciation for the game while also building character and learning patience.
UNC Asheville head baseball coach Scott Friedholm is more than happy to have someone of Maybin's profile come to campus to help develop an even better relationship with the younger players and their families and the community.
"I can't tell you who's having the most fun today, but that's what make these events so special," Friedholm said. "When you have a guy like Cameron Maybin and his stature probably having more fun than anybody else out here, it just brings an energy to this field and you can see it on the kids' faces and even in our own players. They're just having a good time and that's what we hoped for with this."
For Maybin, the decision to team up with the Bulldogs as well as his hometown was an easy one. And his mission with the camp is simple.
"I want to provide something to the youth of this community and I love being around baseball and teaching the fundamentals of baseball," Maybin said. "Through baseball you learn so much more. It builds character, it builds patience. And letting the community know that I want to help these kids build and develop as well as develop these relationships with UNC Asheville and put on more things in the community. This is just the beginning of it all and it's going really well. I'm excited."
Saturday morning's camp offered five different stations: pitching, hitting, base running, infield and outfield. After warming up, the campers were broken up into five groups and rotated through each station. Along the way, those in attendance had the chance to not only learn and work from Maybin himself, but also from the Bulldog baseball players helping man the camp. That is something that older players like Maybin can look back on as they get older.
"One camp that left an impression on me was a camp at Western Carolina," said Maybin. "It was back when Charles Thomas was going there and it was the first opportunity I had to meet Charles and from then on, I grew a bigger love for the game. Just being around the college guys as a kid is great. I think for these kids it's not just exciting for them to be around me, but around these college guys, older baseball players. You can see it."
Maybin didn't always have the opportunity to attend camps like the one put on Saturday morning, and that is why he hopes that this year is just the first of many for his camp.
"I wasn't as fortunate to have something like this. I did a lot of one-on-one work with my dad," Maybin said. "So, this is special for me to be able to put on something like this year-in and year-out, especially with this being the first year and developing that relationship with UNC Asheville to give these kids the opportunity that I didn't have and that's to take advantage of these types of camps."
While the camp offered a chance for the kids to learn, it was also just as important for Maybin and the Bulldog players. It gave them a chance to take a break before the grueling seasons begin in a couple weeks. For UNC Asheville, practices start Friday, and soon they will be tackling a 56-game schedule from February to May. Maybin will report for Spring Training on Feb. 17 and will then begin his grueling 162-game schedule.
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