2025-2026 JR SEAWOLVES BASEBALL - HIGH school TEAMS

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Our Philosophy:

Our high school teams are designed for committed, focused athletes that are looking to play at the college level. These teams are designed to work alongside local high school programs and will shut down intense training during high school season but still provide access to the Strike Zone facility and consulting with our coaching staff. We feel this is very important because athletes should be allowed to compete for their local schools and not forced to choose.

At this age most athletes are focused on one sport to play at the collegiate level and are trying to play in front of college coaches and recruiters.  We encourage multi-sport athletes but these teams train year round and are designed to teach athletes what is expected at the next level. At this level there is a strong focus in the offseason on practice and strength training.  Athletes are provided 24/7 access to the Strike Zone Academy and are expected to take advantage of the resources at the facility for individual development.

Weight training is guided through strength, speed and agility training program designed by former MLB strength and condition coach Frank Velasquez and in conjunction with AHN and Dr. Jeff Kim. Strength, speed and agility training can be done at local schools, the Strike Zone or a gym membership. However this is expected from all athletes on these teams. This prevents injuries and increases performance. If athletes want to get to the next level and excel then they must learn to work on the finer points on their own. 

We have a consistent culture throughout the organization that includes philosophies on the following overseen by:

Our Experts:

• Pitching: Coach Chris Godel
• Hitting: Coach Marc Burchowski (PSU Behrend) and Coach Ryan Uhl (Gannon University)
• Strength and Conditioning:  Frank Velasquez and Barry Heyden  (former MLB strength and conditioning coaches)
• Arm Care: Dr. Jeff Kim (AHN Sports Medicine Physician) along with Frank Velasquez and Barry Heyden
• Fielding and catching: Current college athletes including Levi Laser (Pitt-Johnstown), Chris Mullins, Brendan Koroly and 2026 athletes
• Mental Management and  Mental Health coaches: Brandon Guyer (Major League Mindset) and Mark Morrow (Brighter Tomorrows)

Our Partners:

Our Jr SeaWolves teams provide athletes a college level training experience that is unlike any other in NW PA with the help of partnerships with the Erie SeaWolves, Erie Strike Zone Academy, local colleges and universities, AHN, Rawlings, Easton, Wilson, DeMarini, local townships and local business leaders . All of these partnerships are utilized by our leaders to provide high-level practices in top level facilities with state of the art equipment and positive and professional coaching. 

Where We Train:

Our Wolves are some of the most serious athletes of their age and we work hard to make sure their Wolves Den facilities are top of the line. We also realize that our area does not give baseball athletes much time to train outside due to the weather. That is why we partner with the best facilities in the area for indoor training. This includes the Erie Strike Zone Academy as well as local community partners like Gannon University. In the fall and winter, teams will train at the Erie Strike Zone batting cages with state of the art training equipment, batting cages, Hit TRAX leagues and a new weight room and high ceiling open turf area that will be opening during the 2025/2026 season. Once complete this will provide a 24,000 sq ft training space dedicated to baseball and softball training only. In March we start spring training sessions with a focus on team training, and work to schedule indoor games against other travel teams. As it gets warmer we move outside and play tournaments locally and regionally. Over the fall and next season we will also be developing a new outdoor field location with Eriez Magnetics. This field will be large enough for a high school age athlete to practice outdoors.

Organizational Structure

Only one team per age group is included in our program, unless there is a special circumstance approved by our non-profit board. Teams are built with a team manager who handles all communication with the teams and team coaches that are a mix of volunteers and hired coaches depending on situations. This setup allows coaches to coach while teams managers handle the business side of team operation. Both coaches and team managers work with our organizational leadership to provide the best team environment possible to level up the athletes of each age.

Our Packs

Teams seek out dedicated, blue-collar athletes who enjoy training. We focus on a strong  team culture that emphasizes family values and preparing the young athletes to be the best they can be on and off the field by having one squad per age. This enables our teams to collaborate collectively without toxic in fighting. This also enables our leadership to concentrate on the development of athletes and teams in order to create programs that are tailored to inspire and train each young person. A list of each development age group's goals and further details provided below. Our goal is always quality over quantity and we do not overbook facilities just to make prices cheap. This ruins the experience for the athlete.

Cost

Training comes at a cost but we believe this should not keep hard working families out of our program. Our leadership works hard to accommodate all families and provide methods for them to work hard to offset their cost.  Many ambitious families are able to cover the full cost of their registration through sponsors and ticket sales. 

• Team trainings at Erie Strike Zone including (1) session with SeaWolves Hit Trax league (September through March when weather is adverse)
• Individual Strike Zone annual membership for Jr SeaWolves athlete. This provides 24/7 access for 4 cage bookings per month during prime time and unlimited during non-peak hours. This includes Hack Attack pitching machine access after training.
• Strike Zone Store Memberships that provides Jr SeaWolves members exclusive discounts on the hottest gear including the latest bats like Easton the Dub, Rawlings Icon, Easton Hype Fire, Louisville Slugger Supra, DeMarini the Goods and many more! 
• Strength and agility program for home training and team training at Strike Zone
• Outdoor practice fields (in season late May to beginning of August)
• 4 travel tournaments (up to $1,200 each). Teams may add more tournaments by doing a 3rd fundraiser. This depends on the coach.
• 1 JSW tournament hosted at UPMC Park
• Technical guidance at scheduled practices (once per week). This is provided as college players are available during their non-peak season.  
• Rawlings and Easton Brand game uniforms including: 4 button down jerseys, 3 pants, helmet and bag. 
• 2 hats (Richardson PTS 50 or equivalent). 1 primary design and 1 alternative design.
• Practice jersey and pants, 2 pairs of socks (red and black), 2 belts (red and black).
• 2 team banners. (1) hung at the ESC and (1) to travel with the team
• Pack attack team programs 
• 10 Erie SeaWolves 2026 vouchers (provided in spring 2026)
• Local billboard with team photo run during  July/August time frame 
• Organization end of the year team party 
• Organizational Christmas party

 Our high school team seasons will look similar to the following depending on the team:

• August - tryouts and mandatory team event
• August through mid-September is mandatory down time for most teams to rest athletes arms while athletes go back to school and get focused on the new year.
• In mid-September teams will resume for fall ball tournaments.
• November teams will go to a mandatory 1 practice per week for athletes.  We provide several options for multi-sport athletes to attend 1 practice per week. Players not in another sport are expected to attend all practices. November to December practices are designed to protect athletes arms but teach them the higher level aspects and techniques of the game for their age.
• January teams will start in practice throwing programs to stretch out and strengthen arms to protect against injury.
• March becomes "in-season" for high school teams and our team practices are limited to protect players arms.
• After May, we move outside and resume full practices begin tournament season for the summer which lasts to early to mid August depending on the team.

Each team is slightly different and practices are adjusted for the age and skill level. The above is to provide a standard outline for informational purposes.

16U teams consist of 15 and 16 year old athletes that are committed to the sport and want a high-level of training in a professional environment. These athletes are looking for coaches and instructors that can offer the higher level technical guidance in the sport. These athletes will refine individual skills with training at the Strike Zone Academy and then participate in team practices at the ESC Sports Dome. During the season they will challenge themselves to compete against similar competition that puts them in front of College and University coaches.

COMPETITION GOAL OF THE AGE - USSSA, Perfect Game, Ripken and other national level tournament: Teams will schedule regional USSSA, Perfect Game, No Offseason or equivalent tournaments to challenge the team based on their skill level within reasonable driving distance (Pittsburgh or Cleveland) area but overnight stays will be required because the team will travel to play at  "national" level tournaments like Ripken and other tournaments, Athletes will also be encouraged to participate in showcase events held at the Strike Zone or Erie Sports Center that highlight their skills and market them to colleges. We want to get athletes used to performing in front of recruiters and coaches so that they think its second nature and just perform.

18U teams consist of 17 and 18 year old athletes that are confident they are going to play at the collegiate level. Similar to 16U teams these athletes are looking for coaches and instructors that can offer the higher level technical guidance in the sport. These athletes will refine individual skills with training at the Strike Zone Academy and then participate in team practices at the ESC Sports Dome. During the season they will challenge themselves to compete against similar competition that puts them in front of College and University coaches.

COMPETITION GOAL OF THE AGE - USSSA, Perfect Game, Ripken and other national level tournament: Teams will schedule regional USSSA, Perfect Game, No Offseason or equivalent tournaments to challenge the team based on their skill level within reasonable driving distance (Pittsburgh or Cleveland) area but overnight stays will be required because the team will travel to play at  "national" level tournaments like Ripken and other tournaments, Athletes will also be encouraged to participate in showcase events held at the Strike Zone or Erie Sports Center that highlight their skills and market them to colleges. We want to get athletes used to performing in front of recruiters and coaches so that they think its second nature and just perform.

15U to 18U: $110 per month with 2 mandatory fundraisers ($600 each in ticket sales).  

Note: 

• Families will have the chance to offset their full costs by means of getting sponsorships and fundraising activities. 75% of sponsorship funds go directly to the player account. The other 25% is for the organization for sponsor expenses. 
• Teams may decide to have a 3rd fundraiser to travel to specific tournaments (like Ripken, Sports Force, etc)
• This assumes standard market rates for equipment, supplies and tournaments. If there is a large increase in costs then the prices will need to be modified to reflect market conditions.
• Maintaining a great travel baseball club is essential to its longevity. The expenses of renting a training facility, buying uniforms, team training gear, team/player registration fees for tournaments and double headers, league registration fees, safety gear, insurance, administrative expenses, development programs, etc., should all be considered. 
• The Jr. SeaWolves leadership team has worked hard to save you about $2,500 in registration costs in total. The general cost for a baseball travel program with identical features is roughly $5,000, but our organization has helped cut these expenses by half through partnerships, donations, volunteers, fundraisers, sponsorships, and group discounts. This allows the Jr SeaWolves program to provide the lowest feasible cost without sacrificing the quality of the experience.