CLEVELAND — The Cleveland Indians organization is building bonds through baseball, putting foster kids and their families in the game.
Major and minor league players shared their skills during a special Play Ball clinic on Saturday for families involved with the organization Specialized Alternatives for Families and Youth, or SAFY.
Brooklyn Hawkins is no stranger to the baseball diamond.
“It’s my first year,” she said. “I won my championship. In the rain.”
Even so, the fastpitch softball player was a little nervous to step up to the plate around all the pro ballplayers.
“I get embarrassed when a lot of people watch me,” she said.
That didn’t stop her from hitting some long balls.
“We’ve got people crushing baseballs right now,” said Cleveland Indians outfielder Josh Naylor from the sidelines.
But playing the game isn’t the main reason Hawkins is at the event.
“My grandma’s foster kid wants to play baseball, so I decided . . . maybe if he liked it more after we came here, that I’d teach him some more at home,” she said.
Her grandmother is currently caring for three foster children.
“People who don’t have homes or have bad homes, and my grandma just takes them in and gives them a home,” she said. “And just do things for them that they wouldn’t have at their old house.”
It’s something that’s had an impact on the 9-year-old’s life.
The Play Ball clinic and games gave kids in the foster care system a chance to just be kids.
“I was very fortunate to have both my parents and an older brother looking out for me, so just looking out for the kids that don’t have as much is huge for me,” said Lake County Captains’ outfielder Quentin Holmes.
He was there to coach the kids and to have some fun.
“I mean, it’s still a game,” he said. “Even today, the best thing I can always say to my teammates now is just have fun. We gotta have fun with it and that’s the only way we can get better, that’s the only way we can enjoy every day is just trying to have fun.”
That camaraderie is something that’s good for the community and the sport.
“I think baseball is one of the best sports out there,” said Akron Rubber Ducks outfielder William Benson. “It brings a bunch of different backgrounds together.”
Because at the end of the day, it’s about more than just baseball.
“To be able to come out here and just let these kids know that they’re loved and they’re special,” said Cleveland Indians pitcher Shane Bieber. “And they have an opportunity to do great things just like anybody else.”
Hawkins also said that’s important.
“I decided if you be nice to them (foster kids), maybe they’ll get used to you and then they’ll think better about they’re in a good home, they get fed, they have fun,” she said.
She said she tries her best to be there for the foster kids.
“If they can’t talk to someone in their original home, they can talk to someone at our home.”
And, even though her family keeps changing, she said she’s learned being a team player is what’s most important.
“I’ve been getting less attention, but I know that they need it more than I do because I’ve gotten attention basically my whole life,” she said. “It’s a little different, but that difference is happiness to me.”
