The tempo of Hartselle Baseball Camp picked up Wednesday as 61 players between the ages of 11 and 14 showed up to improve their game with the assistance of Hartselle High head coach William Booth, assistant coaches, visiting coaches and varsity baseball players.

Younger players between the ages of 5 and 10 attended the first two days of the four-day camp.

“We want you to listen to your instructor and work hard,” Booth told the players before drills got under way. “If you do that you’ll become a better player. It won’t do you any good to go through the motions. Good things will happen when you work hard,”

After observing and working with each of five small groups of players, Booth added, “This is an excellent group. We’ll focus on helping them fine tune their hitting, pitching, catching and fielding and make them more aware of how to play the game the right way.

“We’ve got some big kids here. Some of them will be playing ninth grade ball and others will be playing with the junior varsity next season.”

Coaches from out of town joined Hartselle’s coaches and players at the camp.

“I enjoy being here and helping out,” said visiting instructor Charlie Rogers of Huntsville. Coach (William) Booth has an excellent baseball program and his kids are a well-mannered bunch that excels through good coaching and blue-collar work habits.

Of the 61 players participating in camp, 35 are eighth graders.