The Tribune

By RENALDO DORSETT

Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

THE partnership between the Bahamas and Major League Baseball will continue this summer with a showcase for developing prospects.

The MLB will conduct a free summer instructional programme in conjunction with the Bahamas Baseball Federation in July and August.

The group will host prospective 11th and 12th graders, July 11-23 followed by prospective 9th and 10th graders July 25-August 6.

The invite only camp will undergo a selection process in New Providence on June 12. Parents and players interested in participating in the tryouts should contact BahamasTryouts@mlb.com for more information on times, locations, and the registration process.

Last October, Rebecca Seesel, specialist in international baseball operations for the MLB, was on a fact-finding mission as the organisation looked to evaluate whether the Bahamas would be a candidate for its investment in global baseball development.

Seesel said a possible partnership would create an avenue for a myriad of opportunities for those locally invested in baseball.

The most immediate impact the MLB would look to have is in the coaching arena.

“We believe that coaching is really fundamental and kids can only get as far as their coaches can help them get,” she said.

“In the near term, help with coaching is a real possibility. Coaching is crucially important. We have some programmes we have implemented in other countries that we think are important and there is the potential to do that here. In the longer term we have to see what fits here.”

The first programme in the series was coaching clinic last January in New Providence, featuring MLB Hall of Fame second baseman Roberto Alomar.