Baseball and softball players at Guerin Prep can now get some batting practice throughout the winter months without leaving their campus.
The library of the old Holy Cross High School has been converted to a batting cage facility. Work completed in November on the Windy City Training Facility at Holy Cross, opening the door for year-round batting practice to Guerin players and the local community.
The facility can be made into full or half-cages and can handle up to four batters.
“It will allow neighborhood kids to use it, our kids to use it and youth programs to use it,” Guerin athletic director Bob Carlson said. “We were thinking of doing new things to open up opportunities for outside organizations and utilize that space and run with it.
“Our kids are really excited about it and right now we have (the Windy City Travelers) using it, running their baseball and softball programs.”
Bobby Stevens, a former shortstop at Guerin and a 2005 graduate, is now a hitting instructor for the Windy City Travelers. It was Stevens who approached the school about converting the old library into a batting cage facility.
Stevens intended the facility to be used by Windy City and as a potential recruitment tool for his alma mater.
“Eventually we want to gear it as a feeder program for Guerin Prep, so for now we’re trying to get some foot traffic into the school and get back into the neighborhood,” Stevens said.
“I want to see the school strive into the neighborhood. I’d like to see the program at Guerin built back up to where it was when I was there.”
Gary Larsen is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
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