WINTER PARK, Fla (June 24, 2018) – Players on teams in the FCSL come from all over the United States to spend a summer in beautiful Central Florida to play baseball.  Sometimes, it’s not as simple as that.  Players need to find a place to stay and live for the two to three months that they are playing.

Luckily, there is a solution to this issue, and it spawns from the generosity of people’s hearts by allowing players to live in their homes.  Host families are a big part of why the FCSL runs as smoothly as it does.  Many players and even interns that travel from various locations across the country stay with a host family.

Two Diamond Dawgs, Brooks Brophy from Alabama Huntsville and Abraham Sequera from UNF were assigned to live together with a specific host family.  Prior to this, they had no knowledge of each other or the people they would be hosted by.  The host family was unaware of what players they would be hosting until they met them.

Ron and Cathy Robinson took in both Winter Park players, and were excited for the chance to do so.  As the host family, they volunteered to host Brophy and Sequera for the entire season.  They were excited at the chance to help the boys out.

“We heard there was a need and realized it was an easy one we could fulfill,” said Cathy, “We wanted to help out in any way we could.”

Manager of the Diamond Dawgs Chuck Schall is the brother in law of Ron and reached out to him to see if the Robinsons would be willing to host a couple of players.  Realizing how unique this opportunity was, they agreed and were ready to help.

“It’s a great opportunity not only for the boys in the league,” said Ron, “but also for families to stretch themselves and participate in something like this.  If they like baseball, they’d love it even more.”

Ron and Cathy have seven kids and fifteen grandchildren, all of which have moved out, leaving a few rooms open.  The Robinsons are familiar with the baseball life, as Ron coached his three boys for a total of 15 years, all the way from T-ball up to the senior league in recreational baseball.

While it may not be their first time having young adults in their house, it is the first time they have volunteered to be a host family.  It is the first time staying with a host family for both Brophy and Sequera.

“It’s been a good experience so far,” said Brophy, “I didn’t know what to expect but it’s been exciting and they’ve been really welcoming.”

While being at their home away from home, the players have settled into their host family’s house and are beginning to adjust to their summer lifestyle.  Brophy and Sequera are both thankful for the kindness and hospitality and will be even more grateful as the season continues.

“I feel like I’m at home now,” said Sequera, “The Robinson family has been really supportive of everything we do, asking how our games went and such.  I love their dog Bandit too.”

Ron and Cathy wanted to make the boys feel at home as much as possible, and that includes spending time together.  They say that they enjoy the company of both boys and they’re delightful to have around.

“We had dinner together on Father’s Day with some of their family,” said Brooks, “After dinner we all went in the pool and just hung out. It was awesome.”

“It was a lot of fun being able to spend time with their family,” said Sequera, “it gave us the chance to get to know them better.”

The Father’s Day meal consisted of pasta, meatballs, and more.  Home cooking is something that can be a luxury for any college student, especially for a couple of baseball players from far out of town.  The meals aren’t always home cooked though, as six games a week requires the players to be flexible, whether that means stopping to get food on the way to a game or packing a sandwich.

Bonding continues to happen on an everyday basis, as most mornings the Robinson family and the boys get to talk over breakfast and at other points of the day when work and games aren’t happening.  Not only is the player-host family relationship growing, but the player to player relationship is strengthening as well.  Brophy arrived three weeks before Sequera, as UNF continued playing for a spot in the College World Series, but both have quickly warmed up to each other.

“It’s been cool having Abraham around,” said Brophy, “It’s kind of cool to pick his brain and see what he sees as a hitter and in the field when I’m on the mound.”

Sequera, a middle infielder, enjoyed learning from his fellow teammate in Brophy, a pitcher for the Diamond Dawgs.  With such varying positions, it gives them a lot to talk about.

“I’ve been able to talk to him as a pitcher,” said Sequera, “It’s interesting to see what they think about, things like what pitches they want to execute against you and so on.”

In addition the boys being able to talk about the physical diamond they play on, they’ve been able to compete on the virtual diamond as well.

“He’s actually pretty good at MLB the Show,” said Sequera, “Right now I think our series is tied 2-2, so we’ve got to see who wins by the end of the summer.”

All in all, the host family experience for the Robinson family and the boys has been a positive one.  Both parties treat each other as family and continue to grow together as the season rolls along.  The FCSL is built for players to improve their skills over the summer, but also offers players and families alike a chance to bond and make the season truly enjoyable and special for everyone involved.

“I think we’d be willing to do it again in a heartbeat,” said Cathy.

Ken Landis (UCF)