Sponsored Sponsored content Neighbourhood Stops and Shops: Pace Baseball is building children’s skills and character
Earlier this month, Ontario’s weather-forecasting groundhog, Wiarton Willie, failed to find his shadow, signalling that spring is just around the corner. And with the change in season, it’s the perfect time to start thinking about baseball.
For families in East Toronto, this means it’s time to sign up for the much-loved East York Baseball Camp (EYBC) run by Pace Baseball, a local staple for fostering a love of the game while teaching important life skills.
Founded 15 years ago by Andrew Pace and Mark Ireland, East York Baseball Camp has become a key part of the community, helping children ages 4-14 build both their baseball skills and character.
“I was the parent who was looking at my kids playing baseball and feeling frustrated,” says Pace. In traditional house league games, children often don’t get enough repetition to truly develop their skills. This frustration inspired the creation of EYBC—a camp dedicated to providing a more supportive environment where kids can learn, grow, and fall in love with baseball.
Since its inception, the camp’s goal has been clear: to provide a fun and positive culture where kids can improve their skills and gain a deeper understanding of the game. EYBC is not just about baseball; it’s about life lessons, too.
“Failure is built into this game. Not everything goes your way,” Pace explains, emphasizing that baseball teaches resilience, empathy, and leadership. These lessons transcend the field and prepare kids for success in all areas of life.
The camp is designed to provide instruction on throwing mechanics, hitting technique, and fielding skills that need constant repetition and constructive feedback to improve. Through consistent practice, kids can develop a more accurate throw, a smoother swing, and better glove work, setting them up for success both in and out of the game.
The camp’s impact extends far beyond the summer months. In addition to the summer camp, Pace Baseball offers off-season indoor clinics that run on Sunday evenings from October to April. These clinics give kids the opportunity to continue improving their skills even when the weather isn’t ideal for outdoor play.
And for those looking to prepare for the upcoming season, Pace Baseball also launched an After-School Lessons Program last year- which will take place at the Highview Park Diamond (150 Highview Ave.), running from May to June. This program, which meets 1-2 days per week, helps kids get ready for the summer season with focused drills and practice.
What makes Pace Baseball and East York Baseball Camp stand out isn’t just its high-quality instruction-it’s the sense of community it fosters. Many former campers return to EYBC as Instructors in Training (ITs), continuing to develop leadership skills while giving back to the camp they once loved. Some of these ITs even go on to become paid instructors.
“The skills they learn here serve them well throughout their lives,” says Pace, proudly sharing that many former campers have gone on to attend Ivy League schools, earning scholarships and excelling in challenging careers. “They take what they learn here and apply it to whatever they do next.”
The camp has almost come full circle, with many of its original campers about to bring their own children to EYBC, eager for them to experience the life-changing lessons and fun they had.
“As parents, we put our kids in sports not because we think they’ll go to the MLB or NHL, but because we know they’ll gain essential skills like resilience, empathy, and teamwork,” Pace says. Pace Baseball offers a range of programs, including summer camps, off-season clinics, and the after-school lessons program, all designed to help kids develop their baseball skills and grow as individuals.
With spring just around the corner and the new season beginning, now is the perfect time to sign your child up for East York Baseball Camp, a place where they can fall in love with the game and learn essential life lessons along the way.
Camp registration is open now. Interested families can learn more online at https://www.eastyorkbaseballcamp.com/ or email inquiries to pacebaseballcamp@gmail.com
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