Cape Cod Challenger Club takes batting practice with Red Sox coaches.
BOSTON — Monday started for members of the Cape Cod Challenger Club like it would for any professional baseball hitter — in the batting cages.
The 20 young club members, along with volunteers and parents, walked through the Red Sox dugout and the tunnel into the clubhouse batting cages where they were greeted by Boston’s hitting coach and assistant hitting coach, Chili Davis and Victor Rodriguez.
“It’s a great day at Fenway Park,” Davis said. “The highlight of the day was actually seeing the big smiles on their face. Victor and I were fortunate enough to be a part of it. We love it.”
See a photo gallery of the young club members at Fenway Park
The Cape Cod Challenger Club is a nonprofit organization formed in 2005 to give children and adults with physical and developmental disabilities the opportunity to participate in various athletic and recreational activities. For club members, the day at Fenway was a professional experience courtesy of CVS Health All Kids Can Baseball Camp, a partnership between the company and the Red Sox to allow children of all abilities a chance to enjoy the game.
Now in its 12th year, the batting camp brings groups like the Barnstable-based club to Fenway Park for batting practice with Red Sox coaches, a tour of the park and a game.
Video: Cape club members at Fenway
“It’s amazing to see how happy (the campers) get at the small success of making contact and hitting a baseball at the greatest ballpark in the country,” said Joe Demartino, whose daughter Kayla is part of the program. “It’s something awesome to see.”
Each child was able to take some swings in the batting cage under the watchful eye of Davis, who offered tips and assisted each batter as they approached the tee.
“How about you put a bigger swing on that?” Davis said to one of the participants, who did just that, launching a baseball off the tee and down the cage, eliciting cheers from onlookers and fellow club members.
After fine-tuning their swings in the cages, club members emerged from the dugout and gathered under the historic Green Monster in left field for a group photo. They then put their swings to the test, as each participant was able to hit from home plate. Rodriguez lobbed underhand pitches to the plate while the kids stood in the batter’s’ box ready to swing away. Davis leaned over the batting cage to give pointers and tips.
“I’ve been doing this for four years, and it’s always fun,” Rodriguez said. “Anytime we get a chance to make anybody feel good, we love that.”
Following batting practice, the campers ate lunch in the dugout, toured the 104-year old ballpark, watched the Red Sox take batting practice and stuck around to take in the night game between the Red Sox and the Detroit Tigers from the CVS Pharmacy Family section in the stands.
“It is great to see the smiles on these kids faces and see the joy their parents experience as they enjoy a day in the life of a Major League ball player,” said Eileen Howard Boone, senior vice president of corporate social responsibility and philanthropy at CVS Health.
— Follow Shawn McFarland on Twitter: @McFarland_Shawn
