Joel Cuellar Stays Focused with the Help of His Family in the Austin Metro Baseball League
By Steve LaMontia, Director of Communications
Joel Cuellar lives in Austin, Texas and plays in the Austin Metro Baseball League with his 22-year old son Aaron. Joel participates in the 18+, 30+ and 40+ divisions where he has played for the past five or six years. We asked Joel what he is doing to stay baseball ready during the current coronavirus outbreak as he awaits the start of the season. Here are Joel’s responses from a few questions we presented.
What is your biggest takeaway from our current coronavirus outbreak? The biggest takeaway is that the virus is not something to be taken lightly. In our city alone we have over 200 people that have tested positive for the virus thru today and from what I’ve read the virus can cause severe health risk and even possible death. But in hard times like we’re facing today I’m happy to see that our city has implemented rules and guidelines for us to stay safe and to minimize the spread of the virus as much as possible. I’m also happy that Mike Lucas, our president of the league, is looking out for us as players and has postponed the league until it is safe for us to play
What are you doing to stay engaged with baseball? I am blessed to have a 22yr old son, Aaron Cuellar, who has been playing in the league with me since he was 18 years old and together we stay baseball active. At least two to three times out of the week we do long toss, we hit ground balls to each other, we work on various fielding drills, followed by live bp and also various hitting drills to keep us baseball ready and in baseball shape
Are you still able to work out regularly during this period? Yes, I’m still able to work out although my workouts have been modified since my gym and all gyms in our cities have temporarily closed, in favor of more outdoor workouts. Now I do more body weight exercises, I use resistance bands, I do hill sprints and bike riding to build up endurance on my legs and improve my cardiovascular. Of course, all this is on top of the baseball practice we do.
What special activities are you and/or your family able to participate in? When the weather is nice outside we like to take walks as a family and enjoy the fresh air and the views. We’ll all grab our bikes and have a casual ride as a family to stay active and to keep the kids entertained.
Will you be participating in any national fall tournaments this year? Yes, my son and I really enjoy playing in the father and son division of the MSBL World Series tournament in Arizona. We look forward to it every year!
Any additional comments? I’m very happy that we have a league like this in our city because it allows us veteran players to stay a kid. As they saying goes, the day you stop playing baseball is the day you start to age, so for me I’ll keep playing as long as I can so I can stay young for as long as I can!!