Ex-Tiger Matt Walbeck Uses Zoom Training Sessions at His Academy to Help Others During Down Time

Matt Walbeck is an ex-major league ballplayer who resides in Fair Oaks, California and plays for the 50-over Seals in the Sacramento MSBL.  The former Detroit Tiger was in professional baseball as a player, coach and manager from 1987 to 2011 and then started the Walbeck Baseball Academy in 2012.

“I retired from my playing career after the 2003 season with the Detroit Tigers then got into managing and coaching professionally and decided to start my own business in 2012,” said Walbeck.   “About 14 years after my last game I was back to playing.  Scott Brown with the Seals basically talked me into it and what a great experience it has been.  There’s nothing like the camaraderie playing baseball regardless of what level.  I’m glad I was able to play with the great group of guys on the Seals team.  I hope to be playing in the MSBL World Series in Arizona this year.”

“Whether playing baseball or dealing with our current pandemic, always look to find a silver lining and always do your best to learn and adapt.”

We asked Matt what he is doing to stay engaged in baseball and remain fit. “I own and operate Walbeck Baseball Academy including about 130 players who train with us ranging from five to 65 years old.  I host three or four, 45-minute Zoom training sessions six days a week, so I’m either holding a baseball or bat every day and watching players perform drills from their homes while helping them with instruction.  I love baseball, live and dream about it pretty much all the time, and have done so since I was five.  Yes, a body in motion tends to keep in motion.”

“As a family during this time we like to play music, read, go for walks, and ride bikes.  My daughter Olivia is an excellent musician and my son, Luke plays piano.  My wife Stephenie is the anchor of our family and keeps everything stable regardless of pandemics or not.  Thankfully, we are all healthy.  

Our daughter Tatum is in 7th grade and is an excellent student. Unfortunately, she hasn’t been able to play much tennis lately but keeps busy around the house and has been continuing her studies online with her St. Mel’s class.  Luke is graduating from the University of San Diego, and Olivia is a High School Senior at St. Francis so it’s rather disappointing that they won’t be able to go through their graduation ceremonies.  It’s great that we can all be together during this time and we are continuing to grow as a family.”