Malia Riggs
Elmore Autauga News
Last week the Auburn University at Montgomery baseball team hit it out of the park and were swinging for smiles, where members of the team made time for what matters most. Players traded bats and gloves for laughs and smiles by visiting pediatric patients at Baptist East Medical Center.
Members of the team were seen visiting, playing Xbox and just hanging out with pediatric patients during their stay. Pediatric Manager Chase Orozco confirmed that this was the first visit AUM has participated in, and he stated he would love to grow the program.
Head baseball coach Franklin Bush and Orozco have been friends for years, Orozco confirmed. The idea stemmed from the two men’s gears turning and thinking of what was something they could do to make a difference and something that could be beneficial for the kids and for the players.
“Small gestures are so so big for the patients and their families. We’re already starting to see the effects and the difference they’re making in the lives of these patients. The relationships that they’re building, it’s been a really wonderful experience so far,” Orozco said.
While members of the team have only made one visit so far, the first visit was with a patient named Zion. It went so well that Zion asked the players to come back and play Xbox with him again the next day, Orozco confirmed.
The boys came back, but this time, not empty handed. Zion was gifted with a signed baseball, a t-shirt and other AUM gear gifted by the team.
“To Zion, it’s like meeting a pro baseball player, especially with signed gear like that, and really there’s a lot of benefits on both sides (for the patients and the players), and we’re really excited to see how this expands,” Orozco said.
While the ultimate goal is to keep the beds empty, Orozco confirmed that the Baptist East location is the only location with a pediatrics unit in the Baptist Health system, which services all of the River Region. Currently they have 13 beds, and typically have anywhere from eight to 13 patients during the winter months, Orozco confirmed.
Some of the benefits Orozco stated he has already seen is not only growth in the baseball players in their maturity, but also changes in Zion trending in a positive direction.
“A little bit of time goes a long way, and means a lot, it also gives the parents an opportunity for a mental break or to even grab lunch. But it also helps distract the kids and make them feel more at home and forget about everything that comes with a hospital visit. You can really see the joy it not only brings the kids, but the parents too,” Orozco said.
From dugouts and baseball diamonds to playing Xbox with little fighters in hospital rooms, AUM baseball is striking out sickness with kindness and creating home runs of hope one child at a time.
