McEwing, Manto to hold a coaches clinic at BlueClaws’ FirstEnergy Park

LAKEWOOD — New York Met Joe McEwing and former BlueClaws Manager Jeff Manto will be among the instructors at the second annual Lakewood BlueClaws Coaches Clinic on Saturday, Jan. 31, at FirstEnergy Park.

The event, which will be held in the batting cages, luxury suite level and clubhouses of FirstEnergy Park, will run from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. and will be limited to the first 200 coaches to register.

The clinic is designed for all area baseball coaches, from little league to high school levels, and will include instruction in hitting, pitching, fielding, baserunning and fitness/game preparation strategies.

"We’re very excited to hold this clinic again," said Geoff Brown, BlueClaws general manager. "To have individuals who are so knowledgeable about the game and have major league level like Joe McEwing and Jeff Manto is a great opportunity for all area coaches."

In addition to McEwing, who now has six years of big league experience, and Manto, who’s the minor league hitting coordinator for the Pittsburgh Pirates, the clinic will include two other top-notch instructors. Gary Ruby, the minor league pitching coordinator for the Pirates, will participate for a second-straight year, and 2003 BlueClaws trainer Shawn Fasani also will be part of this year’s clinic.

Registration is only $35, and includes breakfast, lunch, a T-shirt and a BlueClaws goodie bag. All participants must be pre-registered. Interested individuals can contact Michelle Casserly at (732) 901-7000 ext. 171 or e-mail her at mcasserly@lakewoodblueclaws.com. The registration form may be picked up at FirstEnergy Park or on the BlueClaws Web site at www.lakewoodblueclaws.
com.