Typically, we take things for granted and don’t realize what we had until its gone. The same goes for sports, but more specifically baseball. While we are all at school, we are around our teammates 24 hours a day. We all have classes together, eat together, practice together, lift together, goof off with each other and live together. With this season being canceled and this quarantine being put into place, all of that was taken from us very abruptly, like someone ripping the rug out from under our feet.
The major thing I didn’t realize was the sense of community that a team like mine has. This season getting canceled has made us all closer than any other team I have been on because we came together as a team and a family when times are the toughest. We all know that it is hard individually, but when we come together as we have it makes it all easier to handle and deal with.
If there is one piece of advice I could give, it would be to make it a point to create a welcoming community within your team. It is invaluable to have a strong sense of family within a team because when a team is comfortable, they play the best. If you have a team that is more comfortable around each other and feel like they can speak their mind without being judged or made fun of, the team will mesh better and the team chemistry would go through the roof. At the end of the day, winning comes down to the level of team chemistry. In my opinion, my team last year was the most talented team that I have ever been on, yet our record didn’t show that. It was because we didn’t have the team chemistry that was necessary to be successful. If you can create a sense of community and family in the clubhouse, the team’s record will show it.
How to be a Successful Collegiate Athlete 