Youth have opportunity to benefit from a pro

The inaugural Todd Greene Summer Baseball Camp in Columbia County will take place June 23-26 at Riverside Park in Evans. The camp will run from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. each day and will cover the fundamentals of hitting, throwing, catching, fielding and base running.

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Initially, Greene was offering the camp to serious baseball players ages 9-14. However, because of several requests, he has decided to open the camp to 15-year-olds as well.

Greene will be involved in all aspects of the camp each day, so the aspiring baseball stars will have a chance to learn all phases of the game from a man who spent 12 seasons in the big leagues.

In addition to Greene, former Greenbrier High School head baseball coach Rodney Holder will be assisting with the camp. Holder won three state titles as a player at Evans, and he helped lead Georgia College and State University to the national championship series during his college days.

We have had our share of camps in Columbia County, but to get a chance to learn the game from a state high school player of the year (1989), college All-American, Team USA member (1991) and a 12-year big league veteran? Well, that will certainly set a new bar for instructional camps in the CSRA.

Greene is now a professional scout for the San Diego Padres. In addition to those duties, he also runs a player development service for high school baseball prospects who are pursuing a college scholarship or could be drafted by a major league team.

He has a terrific Web site that allows parents and players to read all about the details of the camp and offers some background on Greene. Registration for the camp also is offered on the site. Those interested in attending the camp should go to the site soon to register, because space for the local camp is limited. The camp is available at a special rate for any teams or parents with multiple campers. Go to www.toddgreenebaseball.com for all the details.

Bordon will continue the county pipeline to Milledgeville

Former Lakeside baseball standout Paul Bordon will continue his baseball career at Georgia College and State University. The shortstop just wrapped up a solid two-year stint at Gordon Junior College in Barnesville, Ga.

Bordon helped guide Gordon to a 40-17 record this season. He led the team in hitting (.353) and stolen bases (25). He headed for Gordon two years ago as a slick fielder, but his coaches quickly found out he could do much more than just play shortstop.

As a freshman, he hit .329 and paced the team with 20 stolen bases in only 22 attempts. He also struck out just 14 times all season. As a sophomore, the former Panther was even better. In addition to hitting .353 and swiping those 25 bases, he also struck out only 19 times in 201 trips to the plate. He drove in 23 runs, and he smacked eight doubles, two triples and a pair of homers, too. For his career at Gordon, he hit .342 and was an impressive 45-for-50 in stolen-base attempts.

Bordon will have plenty of familiar faces at GCSU, as former Columbia County players Sean Harrell (Lakeside), John Hennecken (Lakeside) and Brooks Robinson (Greenbrier) will also suit up for the Bobcats next season.