With only five returning players, (seniors Nick Leer, Nick Omodt and juniors Mitch Larson, Matt Hophner and Mark Handberg) most of this year’s baseball team is new. Both Varsity coaches are new this year also, Carter Freeman, the head coach, and Nick Kennedy, the varsity assistant. In spite of his young team, Coach Freeman is encouraged because the team has a “great group of returners.”

Edina baseball opened up the season on April 12th with a vengeance against Burnsville, the defending state champ. Although they lost 6-1, the player didn’t lose hope. “The most encouraging thing about this year has been that we have a ‘no quit’ mentality,” commented senior captain Nick Leer. “No matter the score, we as a team are battling day in and day out for one another.”

Coach Freeman hopes that the team gets better every day. He wants them to play the “Edina way.”

 “This is a certain way, basically playing the right way,” said Freeman. “The other coaches and I have outlined ten things or so that we want every player to remember to do during the game.”

Like any team, this group also faces some challenges. With new coaches, a new team, and a short season, it is important to “come together in a very short time in a way that is more meaningful,” said Freeman. The new coaching staff is committed to making this happen. According to Leer, the staff “brings a wealth of baseball knowledge, and has created a new culture for Edina baseball.”

Although it’s fun to watch a team hit home-runs every game, Leer believes the Edina squad is more of a defensive team than a higher scoring one.

Go and see Edina at their next home game, May 5th at 11 a.m.! If you get there early, you’ll catch captains Leer and Omodt doing their pre-game ritual – running to the foul pole, stretching, then running back.