The offseason is many things, but most importantly for baseball, it’s a time where players can truly dedicate themselves to getting better. The offseason is different for every player, whether just trying to get stronger or faster, or in some examples, recovering from injury. What happens in the offseason is paramount to how the regular season goes for individual and team success. The offseason has claimed the careers of many players, and whether you work hard enough or not dictates that.

“[It’s] just a time where you can get better, but not only just get better, but you can get to know the underclassmen,” said Ryan Caccia, a senior baseball player.

Caccia knows how important the offseason and hard work can be. He started his freshman year batting ninth on the Frosh B baseball team. Through hard work and sacrifice, Caccia is now in line to bat first on varsity, and he’s looking to win all-state. 

“I’d like to be one of the top players in the conference again and maybe get all-state,” said Caccia.

After a strong showing on varsity as a junior, Caccia looks to build on his all-conference title. As one of the only two juniors that started, Caccia was one of the star players on North’s varsity baseball team last year. On a team with four Division I commits, that is no easy feat. Caccia is poised to continue his reign of terror amongst opposing pitchers this upcoming season.

The importance of offseason extends beyond personal improvement for Caccia.

“I feel like we are gonna be a really young team, so I want to help [our underclassmen] prepare for not only this season but the next two years as well,” said Caccia.

Caccia plans for his leadership role to go beyond high school baseball. The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater commit hopes to help out the underclassmen for years to come. “I’m just trying to lead by example and help these younger guys.”

Sophomore George Gouriotis said Caccia, “ has been a supportive senior of mine and what I have been accomplishing and makes me look forward to baseball every day, he is the true definition of a leader.” The sophomore looks to build a legacy of his own in the near future. 

“The offseason is my favorite time of the year. Personally, I like to call it the grind season,” said Aiden Kashuba, senior baseball player.

The Elgin Community College commit has worked hard to get to where he is today, and he hopes to build off of last season and stay healthy for this upcoming season.

“It is during this time when I see a lot of progress happen. I have become a lot more serious about my athleticism, so this offseason has been a lot different from last season intensity wise,” said Kashuba.

The offseason is different for everybody. No two people’s offseasons will look the same. Whether one is working harder than the other is determined by what you do. For Quintin Hossli his offseason differs slightly from Caccia’s and Kashuba’s.

“The offseason means a lot to me, I’m coming off of shoulder surgery from last December, so I’m just trying to work as hard as I can to get back to 100% for this next season. I feel mentally ready but I just need to get into the gym and get in shape so I can do some damage this upcoming season,” said Hossli.

Hossli is looking to build back up to where he was prior to his injury. “For the regular season, I’d like to hit for average and get on base as much as possible. Also on the defensive side, I’d like to show off my abilities at first base.” 

As the baseball team looks to continue its success from past years, they recognize the value that off-season can have. 

“You have tough days in the offseason so once games start, they feel like nothing. The difference between someone who trains in the offseason and someone who doesn’t is very obvious and if you want to make the team you have to put in work in the offseason,” said Hossli.