Ripken Baseball Summer Camp Schedule Now Available!

Major League Baseball and Ripken Baseball have teamed up to deliver a joint summer camp series at the Ripken Academy in Aberdeen, MD. MLB Experience Camp - Powered by Ripken Baseball will be offered for five consecutive weeks in Summer 2009.

All campers will feel like big leaguers as they spend an entire day at one of the three area Major League ballparks and learn directly from current and former professional players throughout the week! Camp highlights include:

• Instruction from Cal & Bill Ripken, as well as several other former Major Leaguers
• Position-specific training - campers choose two key positions in which to specialize
• Incredible overnight activities including: National Aquarium in Baltimore, Maryland Science Center, M&T Bank (home of the Baltimore Ravens) & more!
• Ripken Academy's latest addition: Yankee Stadium - the first 90 ft. diamond at the academy featuring big league lights, professional artificial playing surface, bleachers and artifacts from the old Yankee Stadium in New York!
• Video hitting analysis powered by Dartfish

Spring Break Camp - April 9-11

What better way to celebrate the arrival of baseball season than with the Ripken Baseball Spring Break Camp - April 9-11, 2009. This three-day camp will allow each participant to get ready for their upcoming season by learning and applying "The Ripken Way" baseball instruction.

The following camps will be offered in 2009:

• Spring Break Rookie Camp (Ages 6-8): Myrtle Beach, SC and Aberdeen, MD
• Spring Break Baseball Camp (Ages 9-12): Myrtle Beach, SC and Aberdeen, MD
• Spring Break Baseball Camp (Ages 13-15): Aberdeen, MD only

2009 Coaching Clinics

Cal & Bill Ripken are coming to you! The 2009 Ripken Coaching Clinic dates & locations are:

• January 24 - New Jersey (Paramus, NJ)
• February 21 - Long Island (West Islip, NY)
• February 28 - Chicago, IL

The exciting day begins with an introduction to "The Ripken Way" and quickly focuses on specific instructional blocks regarding all aspects of the game, including pitching, hitting, fielding, quality practice planning and game preparation. Throughout the day, question and answer sessions are held to afford attendees the opportunity to interact with and ask questions of Cal, Bill and John.

The Ripken Way™

Ripken Baseball instructional programs combine the wisdom of Cal Ripken, Sr., and his teachings with the 33 years of major league experience accumulated by both Cal Ripken, Jr. and Bill Ripken, creating memorable baseball experiences for youth players and coaches alike.

Keep it Simple
Young baseball players must crawl before they can walk and walk before they can run. Teaching that is too complicated is difficult to remember and can result in frustration.

Make it Fun
Learning doesn't have to be tedious. Drills and instruction are structured so players enjoy themselves while learning.

Games also promote fun and are an important part of Ripken Baseball programs.

Celebrate the Individual
No two players are alike, so why should they be treated as if they are? Each player has his or her own comfort zones, strengths and style.

Individualism is promoted as long as certain fundamental approaches are followed.

Explain Why
"Why" is a young person's favorite question. Young players have an innate need to understand the reason behind the teaching. Lessons that make sense will stick with them.