The Florida Keys Baseball Club’s 11U and 8U teams dominated against regional teams this July, making this the first season that a Keys team has won against other travel squads.
In a weekend tournament July 13-14, the 11U team Florida Keys Lightnings first beat the Homestead Mets 17-7. After a loss to the Plantation team, the Lightnings again beat Homestead 12-2. The Lightning secured victory in a second game against Plantation Predator, winning 12-2 and the championship overall.
The 8U team was no less successful in their games. The 8U Lightning started off strong with an 18-7 victory against Homestead, with three runs in the first inning alone. Facing off against the Big Pine A’s, the Lightning had yet another strong victory, ending the game in the fifth inning with a score of 12-2. The 8U team finished the tournament with a victory against Plantation, winning the championship with a final 10-0 game against Marathon.
The July tournament marks the first time the club has won against travel teams. The Florida Keys Baseball Club, a nonprofit, was established in May of last year. For the first season the club consisted of a single team with 10 players, and has since expanded to incorporate two teams with 28 rostered players.
Founded by Al and Whitney Garcia and Dale and Jessica Smith, the club consists of an 8U team, coached by Daryl Chou, Dale Smith, AJ Engelmeyer and Dr. Dave Coppola, and an 11U team, coached by Al Garcia, Chris Hessing and Josh Moreira. As a charitable organization, the club requires no team fees or league fees to join.
In co-founding the club, Al Garcia made it his mission to establish baseball in the Upper Keys.
“A lot of our baseball players that grow up in the Keys tend to travel to Miami looking for competitive baseball,” he said. “We want the Keys kids to play baseball in the Keys.”
“In a way this is my passion project and I want to contribute to the Keys. This is my way of trying to give back and to share my love of baseball,” said Garcia.
