CLAY HILL – The pop of the mitt. The ping of the bat. Whether it’s youth league, middle school, or high school in Clay County, hot dogs on the grill, United States-themed pennants ordained on the outfield wall, and parents, family and friends in the stands are bound to be on display.

But whether a prospect is looking to earn a collegiate scholarship or further develop their skills, personally attending to a student-athlete can oftentimes be challenging for coaches, who are tasked with managing 14-player rosters in a short practice session.

Those who truly desire to take their game to the next level must commit extra time, money and resources to reach their desired destination.

That’s why Steve Holstine, a current Clay Hill and former Fleming Island resident, founded Hard Core Baseball and Softball Training Academy in 2017, two years after his relocation from Danville, Indiana in 2015.

“God bless the coaches, but you know, when you have 12 to 14 kids and an hour out there and 1 hour, 30 minutes of practice, you do the math. There’s not much time to work with each kid to coach and improve them,” he said.

“No kid likes to go out and fail, and the parent wants them to go and succeed, too, and sometimes, they don’t necessarily know how to go help them. They can get frustrated, and sometimes, it can even create friction in the relationship between the parent and the child. So, having said all of that, I’ve seen a need to provide a service that would give them an affordable opportunity to get their kids the training that they need,” Holstine said.

Steve, a former high school baseball star in the Midwest, found a burning passion for the game when he was young. Since then, it’s a spirit that has latched on inside of him – a spirit that he likely will never let go.

Holstine has now been coaching for more than 20 years.

The loving father and man of faith always wanted to continue coaching, but he didn’t realize the true possibility that he could kickstart his very own fully operational baseball (and softball) skills training academy until he moved to sunny Florida.

“Growing up in the north, it’s a totally different culture. In Florida, it’s year-round play whenever the weather permits it. There’s an on-season and an off-season,” Holstine said.

Warm, sunny weather in Clay certainly wasn’t the only reason that he performed the undertaking upon arriving on Fleming Island from his old home that was more than 900 miles away.

But when Holstine first set foot in the state, he quickly realized the sizable, and advantageous, set of differences that the beautiful year-round weather in the county could provide in his climb to conquer his personal coaching mountain, a mission mainly focused around the kids whom he seeks to make a positive and lasting impact upon.

“I’m just a man of faith, and I don’t push my views onto people, but it’s just part of who I am, and my values reflect that. I just try to inspire them with that and impact them with that,” he said.

Steve said that he was also a former youth pastor at a large church in Illinois, working diligently to aid in character and leadership development.

Fast forward one-half decade later after Hard Core Academy opened, and he’s already trained more than 1,500 players, many of which would leave the county to reach greater heights by becoming part of the select 7.5% of high school student-athletes who go on to the next level to play at Division 1, 2, or 3 schools.

However, the dedicated coach and family man isn’t one for the limelight, as Holstine admittedly doesn't keep official tabs on who went where.

It might be hard to remember, anyway. Holstine has mentored many elementary, middle school and high school student-athletes from kindergarten through 12th grade from Clay. Steve estimates that 70% come from within county lines, the other 30% that he said hail from other areas of the Sunshine State and outside of the Florida border, some being as far away as Georgia, South Florida and beyond.

Many of those players stumble across Hard Core Academy while on vacation or when simply passing through the area.

Hard Core Academy formerly operated on County Road 220 in Fleming Island, but after moving to the Middleburg-Clay Hill area in 2021, the coach opened a new facility in his backyard. The set-up is complete with a large barn for catching, pitching and hitting practice. It also has a large, field-like backyard.

The facility serves as a sort of a safe haven for amateur players of all ages, who can compete and shoot for the stars while having fun while participating in the game that they love.

A myriad of services is offered at the academy, most of which can be scheduled for 50-minute sessions. Several options are available, including hitting, fielding, throwing, catching, or the combination of two skills, such as hitting and throwing, hitting and fielding, fielding and throwing, or catching and throwing.

Hard Core Academy is especially known for catcher clinics, with large sessions that draw as many as 40 players. It’s something that Steve especially likes to focus on.

“They actually see the field from a totally different perspective, and a lot of these kids are not taught how to properly play the position,” he said.

Holstine’s son, Joseph, is also making a name for himself as a baseball coach. He ran the operation for more than a year during a time when Steve was extremely busy with his 9-5 job.

To access a full list of rates or schedule an appointment, please visit Hard Core Academy’s website at https://Hard Coreacademy.schedulista.com/, Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/Hard CoreCatching, give Holstine a call at (904) 602-8777, or send him an email at steveholstine@cbvfl.com. The academy’s address is 5622 Canvasback Road in Clay Hill.