Heyward hosts indoor clinic in blustery Chicago

CHICAGO -- Wintertime in Chicago and baseball are not a typical pairing. But on this particular Saturday in January, the sound of gloves popping and bats cracking echoed across an indoor turf field on the city’s West Side.

Jason Heyward took part in a youth baseball clinic in Chicago, benefiting Intentional Sports and the Jason Heyward Baseball Academy. Young ballplayers ranging in ages from 6-14 years old gathered for hands-on instruction to work on their baseball fundamentals.

The academy, which opened last February, is located within Intentional Sports, one of three non-profit organizations anchoring the North Austin Center, which is a sports, education and wellness complex. One year later, the original idea for the baseball facility is in full swing.

“Days like today, having a camp, a clinic, families coming out, bringing their kids, them having something else to do on a Saturday in January," Heyward said. "When you see what temperature it is outside right now -- 17 degrees, snow on the ground -- that's huge.”

It’s something Heyward can connect with closely. Growing up in McDonough, Ga., his youth baseball team had an indoor facility for practice, affording him and his teammates the opportunity to finetune their craft -- rain or shine.

The North Austin Center, likewise, has a major communal impact. The 10-acre site is home to a FIFA regulation-sized indoor soccer turf field on which the young ballplayers went through drills with the Intentional Sports staff on Saturday. It also features classroom spaces, indoor courts and a workout facility, among other amenities providing opportunities for local families.

Heyward donned a glove and joined the kids on the turf during the clinic.

“To see this space in Chicago, in this city, be used for something in the community, to have hope for something like this to land here is awesome that it's a reality now,” Heyward said.

“What we always say is that sports can't change the whole world at once, but we can move the needle,” said Austin Carr, president of Intentional Sports. “When you look at the faces around here, many of them are from right across the street or a few blocks away, and [they] didn't have a facility that was accessible for them, that was affordable for them and that was excellent.

“That is, I think, what we want to do at Intentional Sports. We want there to be access to high-level sports -- and a high-level facility.”

When the facility held its ribbon-cutting ceremony last year, Heyward was gearing up for Spring Training with the Dodgers, who signed him to a Minor League deal with the opportunity to compete for a spot on the Opening Day roster.

Heyward made the team and re-signed with Los Angeles this offseason, but he continues to be personally involved with the facility. Along with helping out with events such as the one on Saturday, he has also worked out in the facility this offseason, and when Los Angeles was in town to play the Cubs last April, he and his Dodgers teammates visited to interact with the kids.

“As a professional athlete, his schedule is crazy,” Carr said. “He's getting pulled a million directions, and the offseason is very small. But he's made it his priority to be in Chicago and be present for this academy, and just at Intentional Sports, which is extremely important. He has the mentality, ‘I'm going to go where I give,’ and I think that's a wise thing for anybody, whether you're a pro athlete or not.

“When you're giving and sowing into the community, go there and see what's going on and be a face, not just a name on the building. He's been amazing for these kids to be able to interact with. I think, at the end of the day, one word is just inspiring -- inspiring the kids.”

As part of the clinic, Heyward signed autographs and took pictures with participants. At another point, they gathered around him for a Q&A session, asking him about his career and his own fandom growing up.

Heyward, whose favorite players were Ken Griffey Jr. and Derek Jeter, vividly remembers his first time seeing "The Kid" play in person at a Mariners-Rangers game in Arlington.

The inspired looks and smiles on the young ballplayers’ faces during the clinic lit up the room.

“Just interacting with these kids, man, it's really cool, because they see us on TV,” Heyward said. “We’re superheroes to them. For them to be excited, it makes it more than worth it to me just to be here and share some moments with them.”