EMERSON, Ga. – Development on the field is a goal for many travel baseball organizations, but the Cincinnati Spikes add another side to the development part; the development of their faith lives.
“One of the biggest factors that is important to our organization is that we’re a faith based organization as well, so that means something to us as well as obviously the game of baseball and playing at a high level,” said Spikes’ head coach Trent Hanna.
The Christian-based organization, started in 1990 by Phil Arrington, aims at growing young men in their faith lives so that they can realize that there is something bigger than baseball. The team is comprised of players from three different states, and throughout their travel schedule, they hold spiritual-based team activities to enrich not only their bond with each other, but their bond with God.
“I like to think that there is an on-field and off-the-field element to our organization, and we’re trying to prepare these guys for long term,” Hanna said. “Baseball is extremely important to us, and we tell the guys that baseball, we want you guys to play as long as you can, okay, but baseball has a ceiling and eternity doesn’t, so we do things such as Bible studies and devotionals to try to instill in those guys and just give them good perspective.”
Hanna’s goal is for his players to realize that even as they grow older, their faith will still be there for them, and that it is an important part of everyday life. He also said that it is important to mold and prepare his players for lives as husbands, fathers and members of the community. Many players have really invested into the faith side, including Keegan Fish, who believes that the faith side helps the team on the field.
“I think it’s really cool that all the guys really take part in that and respect it,” Fish said. “Like I said, there’s more important things than baseball, and the coaches do a really good job of teaching us that. Just playing for him each and every day I think helps us play better too because we’re playing for more than just the Spikes’ name and the name on the back, but you’re also playing to serve the Lord and glorify him and spread his word, which is really cool.”
The development of high level baseball players is the other side of development for the Spikes. As an organization, the Spikes offer the opportunity for its platers to compete at a high level of baseball, which he attributes to the talent level of his players. Thirteen players on the Spikes’ roster are already committed to play at the collegiate level, including the 2018 grad Fish, who is committed to play at Ohio State University. Fish credited the coaches of the Cincinnati Spikes with helping him evolve as a player over the past few years.
“I think they all have really good experience, so they can use their experience to help us. I’ve become such a better catcher, hitter and player all around,” Fish said. “I can definitely see a lot of improvement in my game over the past few years, and I have them to thank for that.”
Another talented player on the Cincinnati Spikes is the No. 1 rated 2018 grad in the state of Kentucky, Trae Harmon.
“Trae Harmon, first and foremost, I’ll tell you he’s a tremendous individual, he has a great heart, and this is his second year in our program, and he has some unteachable tools. You’re going to see him out in the field, and he’s going to stand out maybe compared to most guys,” said Hanna. “When he’s in the box it’s different, it comes off his bat different.”
The 6-foot-4, 225-pound first baseman is committed to the University of Kentucky, which advanced to the Super Regionals for the first time in program history earlier this week. The calling card for Harmon is his bat, possessing a quick and powerful bat. Even though Harmon has excelled at the plate, he realizes his need to improve defensively.
“They told me I need to work on my athleticism and defense around the plate, so I’ve been working on that mostly trying to clean up my footwork and just try to be more athletic,” Harmon said. “As a bigger guy, you kind of get the bad rap that you’re big and slow, but still look like I can move around and stuff.”
Hanna also realizes the importance of helping Harmon add dimensions to his game, so that he can be even more skilled at the next level.
“We’re just continuing to try to work with him to refine his overall game, specifically defensively at first base, so he’s a well-rounded player to when he gets to coach Mingione at the University of Kentucky,” Hanna said.
Harmon has already impressed in the 17u Perfect Game/East Cobb Invitational at LakePoint, posting a 101.1 mph and 96.8 mph exit velocities in his team’s game against Georgia Jackets. The team would win the game by a score of 9-2, pushing their record to 2-0 in pool play.
The team is scheduled to play in multiple Perfect Game events this summer, and have played in many in the past. Fish said that the team was unsuccessful in advancing out of bracket play in the WWBA last year, but looks to do so this year. Hanna offered his team’s goals for the summer, knowing that they are a talented team capable of performing on the big stage.
“We met as a team 2 1/2 weeks ago, our whole team was there and for us we have three ultimate main goals,” Hanna said. “The first one is that we want to glorify God with our thoughts, words and actions, and we want to spread his word through the game of baseball. The second one is we want to win a national championship. We got a little bit more specific this year with these guys, and we want to win the Perfect Game World Wood Bat, because we ultimately feel that we have a club that can do that.”