Play ball!

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Tori Schultz
  • 6th Air Mobility Wing public affairs
MACDILL AIR FORCE BASE Fla. --  The words "play ball" echo throughout the youth baseball fields during the opening ceremony March 29, 2014 at MacDill Air Force Base, Fla. Children as young as three-years-old came out to be introduced to the crowd and play a few innings of baseball.

"Saturday is my favorite day of the week because I get to see the kids take the field with their new uniforms and it's a great feeling," said Peter Schmidt, 6th Force Support Squadron baseball coach.

Maj. William Spencer III, 6th Air Mobility Wing chaplain, kicked off the opening ceremony with an invocation preceded by opening remarks from Col. Scott DeThomas, 6th AMW commander. Schmidt read the Little League Pledge, Coaches Code of Ethics and Parents Code of Ethics before the 10 teams were introduced.

The youth baseball program consists of children of active duty, retired and Department of Defense civilians. Children ages three to four years play Start Smart Baseball, five to six years play T-Ball, seven to eight years play Coach Pitch, and nine to eleven years play Player Pitch.

"Our programs are developmental and we stress having fun and learning," said Schmidt.
Schmidt played baseball while growing up, but found out later in life his strong point was coaching. He started coaching Air Force youth in 1976 and took over the youth program at MacDill in 2008. With 38 years in the youth program under his belt, Schmidt celebrated his retirement on Saturday during the opening ceremony.

"I love this job and could not have had a better job leading up to retirement," said Schmidt.