Yankees Outfielder Brett Gardner Speaks to Budding Superstars at Coleman Country Camp

There was a Gardner (OK, we know we are playing loosely with spelling here, but play along) at Coleman Country Day Camp in Merrick on Thursday afternoon, which may not be something out of the ordinary on most days, but on this day this particular Gardner wears pinstripes while he's working.

New York Yankees outfielder Brett Gardner stopped by Coleman Country for a couple hours to talk to campers about his life, and to give out a few pointers in the game he makes his living playing.

The campers were noticeably eager as they awaited Gardner's arrival, and did not make any attempt to be subtle about it. All over camp numerous cheers could be heard; each including the name "Gardner" in some variation.

The hundreds of campers that attend Coleman Country got a chance to see Gardner in shifts of about 150 campers at a time; there were six groups over the two hour period.

Each group of campers concluded their session with the Yankees speedster by running the bases, and giving Gardner a high-five as they reached third base.

"Being with the Yankees you got a huge fan base, you have a lot of fans" Gardner said. "You get to be able to talk to talk to kids, meet kids and you never know you might make a difference in one kid's life or maybe make a difference in the kind of day they're having or something like that, and for me, that's all worth it."

There was plenty of Yankees apparel on display from campers and workers alike as they welcomed Gardner inside their camp. And when it came time to run the bases, the campers made sure to give it their all; a few even slid into third base before greeting Gardner.

When asked how it felt to run the bases with Gardner, Zachary Borges, a Coleman Country camper, said, "It was fun." He went on to say, "I was waiting for this day at the beginning of the month."

Gardner showed the campers the proper way to round the bases, and in some cases, the proper way to take a lead. A lesson from one of the best base stealers in Major League Baseball is not a bad way to spend a Thursday afternoon.

"I think one of the main things to the younger kids is just to touch the inside part of the base when you're running the bases," Gardner said. "The straighter the line you take, the quicker you're going to get there, so I think it's important for them to realize that."

Gardner shared these lessons with the hundreds of campers who sat before him on the afternoon. He also told the campers a little about his life; Gardner's high school graduating class in South Carolina was made up of 22 students: six boys and 16 girls.

Ross Coleman was able to reach out to the Yankees star by way of a friend of Gardner's agent. When it was all said and done, Gardner found his way to Coleman Country, and everyone seemed to be happy about that.

"We have had some other terrific people (guest speakers) in the past, but we reserve it for people that we think really are role models," Coleman said. "We view Brett as a tremendous role model."

Gardner did not disappoint, as he gave out about 900 high-fives on the afternoon.

"We have a bunch of kids here who we're trying to teach to dream big, and that anything is possible," Coleman said. "We thought Brett would be the perfect role model for somebody; even he wasn't the biggest guy growing up, he worked hard, chased his dream, never let anybody tell him he couldn't do something, and now he's playing baseball for the best team in the world."

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