Having emerged from the UK, Will Lintern realized the “American dream”
of many young baseball players by getting a place at Menlo College in California,
where he was able to play the sport every day. Will was a member of the
London Mets’ championship-winning squad of 2008 and has played for
Great Britain on many occasions, most recently as starting catcher against
The Bangers in Taunton.
Where did you grow up and how did you get into baseball?
Where I grew up is quite an interesting
question. I was born in South Africa and moved to California when I was four; it
was here in the town of Belmont that I first discovered baseball. My father,
having previously travelled across the United States of America, had already become
a baseball fan courtesy of a visit to Dodger Stadium when he was 21. It was
1988 when we arrived in the San Francisco Bay Area and the Oakland A’s were
enjoying the fortunes of a team managed by Tony La Russa and starring the Bash Brothers
(Mark McGwire and Jose Canseco). The first televised game I saw with my father
included back-to-back home runs from McGwire and Canseco. We knew this would be
a pretty interesting team to follow and became keen Oakland fans. From
here, living and growing up in America, and having parents who were both very
keen for my brother and me to play as many sports as possible, it was a natural
progression to play baseball and join the local little league. The rest, as they
say, is history.
You spent four and a half years playing college baseball. What was
the experience like and what were the highlights from that period for you?
The decision to go to Menlo College and play four years of baseball was the best
decision I ever made; the experience was like no other. For a British kid
growing up dreaming of playing baseball in America, to suddenly be thrust into sunny
California playing 4-5 hours every day, it was a dream come true. There was,
however, a very steep learning curve, facing up against players who were all bigger
and stronger than me and had been playing almost every day for the past ten years.
This did not discourage me as I quickly acclimatised and took matters into my own
hands. First up was the size and strength. I hit the weight room very hard,
lifting 4-5 times a week, and the ‘All You Can Eat Buffet’ in the college
cafeteria ensured I was consuming more than enough calories. To tackle the
matter of game experience I was very fortunate to be taken under the wing of the
team’s starting catcher
Jim Goethals, who I would work out with for an additional 2-3 hours at the
field (including off days). Whilst my mentor graduated after my sophomore
(second) year and signed with the Houston Astros organisation, he would return in
the fall and winter as an assistant coach and I continued to learn from him right
up until the day I graduated.
Looking back, what I miss most is the everyday simplicity of the game. Going
out to the field every day at 12:30, playing catch, fielding balls in the outfield
during batting practice (shagging) whilst talking with your friends and team mates,
then getting your work in. The highlights of my four years may seem rather
odd to the casual player or fan, and sure I love looking back at remembering
the journey I made from a young scrappy British kid to a team captain and starting
catcher, but it is the simple things, the everyday tasks that are aspects of the
game that make it all the more perfect.
For British baseball fans who may be unaware of the National Baseball League,
can you tell us a bit about the level of competition and what a season in the top
tier of British baseball is like from a player’s perspective?
The season is always the best part of the year for any ballplayer and this past
summer was no exception. I had a tremendous amount of fun playing with the
London Mets, which included some former mentors (Alex Malihoudis and Josh Chetwynd),
some former foes (Simon Pole), and then my brother George, who has been on
every British team I played on from Tonbridge to Brighton and then London,
and also the GB Junior National Team. I think that fans of the sport will
be pleasantly surprised with the standard of play in the National Baseball League.
The 2008 London Mets have been touted as being the best team to have ever competed
in the British leagues. Whilst the standard is lower than what is played in
the USA or in some countries on continental Europe, fans can expect to see some
very good, highly competitive and very fun baseball.
The Great Britain senior team will be looking forward to the World Cup in
September. How far do you think the team can go in the tournament?
We are entering the World Cup as underdogs and we’ll face some very stiff
competition, particularly from Japan, and must be realistic in the team’s
expectations.
However, I am a big believer that if you enter a situation - whether it be
athletic competition, a job interview or any other matter in life - not expecting
to win it is almost impossible to leave victorious. The odds seem to be stacked
against us, but in a group shared with Japan, Nicaragua and Russia where a
single victory could see us advance to the second round, anything can
happen, and that is both the beauty and the challenge of international tournament
play. In knockout tournaments all it takes is one upset for a team to gain
momentum, and then it is anyone’s game. Burnley accomplished similar
feats against both Chelsea and Arsenal in the Carling Cup this year, and assuming
we can field our strongest lineup I see no reason why GB can’t rattle a few
cages come September.
You are the Coach-in-Residence for the West Midlands. What does the
role entail and what’s the most enjoyable part of the job?
Being the Coach-in-Residence for the West Midlands puts me on the ground as a missionary
spreading the word of baseball throughout Birmingham, Coventry and Rugby.
My job has many facets, including being a resource to the baseball and softball
clubs of the West Midlands and entering new environments such as the schools
of Birmingham, Coventry and Rugby to encourage more kids to take up baseball and
softball. The most enjoyable part of my job had been the delivery within schools
and local clubs, where I have been able offer hundreds of excited youngsters the
opportunity to try baseball. It was only a few weeks back that I was
talking with one of my summer assistant coaches about how Thursday afternoons from
3:30-4:30 at the Cardinal Wiseman School in Coventry were some of our fondest memories,
as 50 boys and girls would sprint across the playground at the end of school to
play baseball. Those days always provide me with even more inspiration, knowing
that baseball has a very real chance to become a popular summer sport.
Your fledgling coaching career has also seen you become involved with the
GB Cadets, first as an Assistant Coach and now as the Head Coach. Can you
tell us a bit about the Cadets (how youngsters can get involved, what competitions
you participate in, etc.)? What’s the most rewarding part of coaching
young baseball players, particularly Brits who traditionally might shy away from
the sport?
I had a lot of fun as the Asssitant Coach to Adam Roberts on the Cadet National
Team in 2006 and that experience inspired me to take the post as Head Coach.
The Cadets (aged 13-15 in the year of competition) participate in one competitive
tournament per year. We finished 2nd at the European Qualifier in Turkey in 2008,
and will compete in the same tournament in 2009 as only the winner is promoted to
the European Cadet Championships. I also try to take the team to another preparation-based
tournament, where the focus is on player development rather than winning.
The team prides itself on being winners, which is different from the result of winning.
You can’t always control whether you win or lose, especially in international
tournament play, where one loss can determine the outcome of an entire campaign,
but each individual, player or coach can control whether they are a winner or not.
This means taking pride in winning but understanding losing, being the best team
at running on and off the field, being the best dressed and most respectful team,
working harder than anyone else, and on the day just playing the game and having
fun.
Eleven players graduated to the Junior programme this year, so I am on the lookout
for more young talented British ballplayers to travel and compete in the European
Qualifier, if there are any players or parents interested in trying out, there will
be open try-outs held for all players who are within the age bracket. Further
details will be announced via the
BaseballSoftballUK and
BBF websites.
Where I grew up is quite an interesting
question. I was born in South Africa and moved to California when I was four; it
was here in the town of Belmont that I first discovered baseball. My father,
having previously travelled across the United States of America, had already become
a baseball fan courtesy of a visit to Dodger Stadium when he was 21. It was
1988 when we arrived in the San Francisco Bay Area and the Oakland A’s were
enjoying the fortunes of a team managed by Tony La Russa and starring the Bash Brothers
(Mark McGwire and Jose Canseco). The first televised game I saw with my father
included back-to-back home runs from McGwire and Canseco. We knew this would be
a pretty interesting team to follow and became keen Oakland fans. From
here, living and growing up in America, and having parents who were both very
keen for my brother and me to play as many sports as possible, it was a natural
progression to play baseball and join the local little league. The rest, as they
say, is history.