HAMLET — One of Maurice McLaurin’s favorite parts of being the City of Hamlet’s Parks and Recreation director is seeing the local community come together at the ball field.
The athletic complexes in Hamlet have sat dormant, like most across the country, for the better part of the last year due to the pandemic.
But McLaurin, with the help of several coaches and parents, revitalized youth baseball and brought the county back together this summer. It was the first time since 2019 that the City of Hamlet held its annual rec baseball league.
McLaurin said that “over 250 kids” participated in this summer’s co-ed baseball season, with players competing in four different age groups — 5-6, 7-8, 9-10 and 11-13-year-olds.
What McLaurin called an overwhelmingly positive turnout, allowed Hamlet Parks and Rec to have 18 total teams. Each of the three younger age groups fielded five teams, with the oldest bracket having three teams.
Players competed in an eight-game season that concluded last week with a tournament. Hamlet also held an interleague all-star game last Thursday.
“It was great seeing so many familiar faces and new faces out at the ball fields this summer,” McLaurin said. “I think a lot of people enjoyed getting things back to normal and playing baseball.
“Our turnout this summer was outstanding, and there was great support from a lot of families from Hamlet, Rockingham and other parts of the county,” he added. “We had a lot of great games, the seasons went well and everyone seemed relieved to be back doing the things they love.”
Clinton Parker, who coached two of his children this summer, one on a tee-ball team and the other on an 11-13-year-old team, was impressed with how well McLaurin and the City of Hamlet orchestrated the summer league in regards to play and the safety of everyone involved.
He said that every parent and player received a copy of their team’s practice and game schedule weeks in advance, and that McLaurin “took precautionary measures” when the league started back up.
One of the COVID-19 safety protocols McLaurin put in place was splitting games up so that only one field was being played on one day, and the other field was used the next day to help reduce the number of players and fans in the area.
There were also guidelines for fans to wear a mask, but those watching games were allowed to socially distance up and down the baselines using folding chairs. Before and after games, umpires and others would spray disinfectant and wipe down the dugouts.
“What stood out to me about Maurice was when he was two coaches short for teams, he took the coaching roles to allow the kids to keep playing,” Parker said.
“Maurice was super nice to all the kids, parents, coaches and umpires and he appreciates all they do. I believe that everyone who came to Hamlet for baseball enjoyed their season.”
Parker noted that it was also nice to see his five-year-old son get to play his first season of tee-ball with other kids his age. His 12-year-old son was also able to return to playing baseball after a year off.
“It was nice to see my two children not just playing baseball, but having fun outside with other children,” Parker said. “They were able to build friendships and see friends they haven’t seen in a while. It was great to see them have social interaction and learn what teamwork can achieve.”
McLaurin echoed those sentiments about local youth players getting the chance to interact with other kids while enjoying the sport of baseball.
“The simple fact is that a lot of kids have been in the house, not in school or around other kids this past year. So the main thing was to make sure the kids had fun while safely playing baseball,” McLaurin said.
“The best part for me was being able to interact with the teams, players, coaches and families,” he closed. “Seeing the kids happy really made it worthwhile.”
Hamlet Parks and Rec will begin registration for its upcoming youth soccer season, which will be open from July 7 through Aug. 6. The cost is $35 per player, and the age groups are 4-6, 7-9 and 10-12-year-olds.
