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A to Z Batting Cages now open for indoor training

September 18, 2020   ·   0 Comments

By Brian Lockhart

Orangeville’s newest sports facility will allow baseball and slo-pitch players to practice their hitting in a controlled environment.

A to Z Sports and Batting Cages opened their facility after months of planning as soon as current restrictions allowed them to put their pitching machines into motion.

Classified as an ‘entertainment’ facility, owner Mike Uddenberg said it took some extra work to get the facility up to compliance.

Originally, he had planned to open at a Highway 10, location just north of town, however a fire destroyed the building before they could even start an the search was on for a new facility.

When the location on Broadway became available, he realized it was perfect for his pitching machines and turf floor.

“We opened the first day of Phase 3 on August 4,” Mike explained. “We were ready to open before that, but we couldn’t open because we are considered an entertainment venue.”

As a baseball player himself, Mike said he saw the need for such a facility in town.

“I’ve played baseball my whole life,” he explained. “I grew up in batting cages. There’s a lot of kids and parents involved in baseball in Orangeville. I looked around and there was nothing – I thought we just have to do our own batting cages here, and it went from there. I partnered with my dad and we started brain-storming. We found a place in Mono in November, but that burned down. We had the three pitching machines and all the turf was in my garage, and we were just waiting to find a place. Over that time we were on Facebook and getting a great response from people who were interested.”

The facility is set up for nine pitching machines, three in each batting area. The areas are enclosed with netting to catch the hit balls. The floor is artificial turf.

The machines each have their own special pitch. You can practice with a slo-pitch lob, a softball pitch, or a standard baseball pitch.

For hardcore players, you can take a ball at over 90 miles per hour.

The netting can also be removed to make a wide open turf facility to practice fielding a ball.

The A to Z Batting Cages are open seven days a week. You can make an appointment to book a machine.

Walk-ins are also available from 10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.

The facility is located at 62 Broadway, at the rear of the building. 


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