Weather Costs Pioneers' Baseball Another Game

On Tuesday afternoon, rain pelted the infield dirt at Miller Field prior to the scheduled start time for New Providence’s varsity baseball game against Hillside.  

The mucky puddles created by the weather made the field unplayable, and it cost the Pioneers another game, something they have to be used to by now. 

The team lost most of its spring scrimmages to the foul weather, and it hasn’t gotten much better since the season started; Tuesday’s game was already the third game postponed due to rainy conditions.

Pioneers’ coach Chris Brodeur said the weather is just another obstacle the team has to be prepared to handle.

“This is baseball in the Northeast,” he said. “Of course it is frustrating, but everyone faces the same challenges. As a team, we want to be able to handle just about anything we face.”

Still, the lack of repetitions against live pitching and handling live game situations has noticeably bogged down the Pioneers during their 1-3 start.

Brodeur said the team has made due with the facilities and space available, and noted that although the weather has beleaguered the physical aspect of the Pioneers’ game, he won’t allow Mother Nature to mess with the heads of his players.

“We try to make practice more difficult than the games,” he said. “We challenge ourselves daily to compete in every instance, even something as small as cleaning up after [batting practice]. As far as baseball situations, we spend significant time talking about different situations first, and then executing them. We can always work the mental game, no matter the weather.”