Bruins’ Martin dodges hurricane

Although Hurricane Dennis caused some of their games to be rained out, Rock Bridge pitcher Ben Martin and his teammates on the 16-year-old Mac-N-Seitz traveling baseball team had a rewarding trip to Puerto Rico last week.

The team, which played in several Puerto Rican cities and had its last game set for Friday, won its first three games but the remaining three were cancelled. However, coach Mike Lusardi said the team was never in danger.

“It really never got scary because its track didn’t come near us, but we got a lot of the rain,” he said.

Mac-N-Seitz is a program in Kansas City that organizes traveling baseball teams for boys ages 9 to 18 when their schools’ teams are offseason. Mac-N-Seitz teams typically play regionally and Lusardi said his 16-year-old team is the first to travel out of the country.

“I think it’s valuable for the players to get some international experience because baseball is an international sport,” said Lusardi, who came up with the idea earlier this year. “I think the boys really enjoyed their time down there.”

Martin, who will be a junior at Rock Bridge next year, said he learned a lot from the Puerto Rican players, who demonstrated a true love for the game.

“Those kids just love to play,” he said. “They played hard and they played to win, but they were good sports too.”

Martin said his team traveled with a team of Kansas City-area college players that were organized by the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. When the FCA handed out T-shirts to their opponents after every game, the Puerto Ricans often offered their own uniforms in return.

“They have an entirely different mentality,” Martin said.

Martin also noticed a difference in the quality of equipment the Puerto Ricans played with. He said they often didn’t have enough for all their players. In one game, the Mac-N-Seitz catcher shared a chest protector with the opposing catcher. Martin said the experience created a sense of community among all the players.

“We all had to work together to make sure all the kids were safe,” he said.

Martin said the trip prepared him for future opportunities to play internationally.

“Our trip to Puerto Rico was short-lived, but I’d love to go back and play there next year,” Martin said. “I’m sure the guys on my team would too.”

The Mac-N-Seitz team is 34-1.

“There’s no room for losing on our team,” Martin said. “We expect to win.”

Martin said he has to make sacrifices for his commitment to such an elite team.

“I don’t have a lot of time for friends or hanging out,” he said. “It requires a lot of commitment.”

However, Martin thinks his dedication will pay off by preparing him for college baseball.

“I definitely want to play in college,” he said. “Whatever happens after that happens.”

Lusardi said Martin has a lot of potential for a career in baseball.

“He’s an outstanding player,” Lusardi said. “He has the character and the temperament to go a long way.”

The Mac-N-Seitz summer season is June and July, and the fall season picks up again in September. Lusardi said the team will play mostly junior college teams in the fall season.

“We’ll get beat quite a bit, but that’s OK,” Lusardi said. “They only get better by playing better teams.”

The next action for Lusardi’s team is the Cowboy Classic July 14-17 in Stillwater, Okla.