Graphic by Logan McQuaid, Graphic Design Intern
By Sarah Almeida, Staff Writer and photographer
“It’s been number one in my life above everything else.” Tony Gura is talking about baseball and the way it has dominated his life.
At just seven years old, Tony Gura started his lifelong journey into baseball. It wasn’t always sunshine and rainbows, however. The beginning—just like every new activity—proved difficult. Being unsuccessful initially only egged on onlookers to try and persuade him to stop. Well, he kept going. Practicing nonstop, he eventually improved. Gura says that getting better at baseball was even more exciting because of his poor start. It was a way of telling people he made it.
Currently a 19-year-old sophomore at Moraine Valley Community College, Gura has developed valuable characteristics from the sport. The most prominent is how optimistic he has become. Coinciding with this transformation, he believes this outlook is crucial for being a baseball player. Besides looking for the positive, he also says that “being coachable and having a good work ethic” are vital to the sport.
When asked about what his favorite activity during practice is, Gura said he “loves to hit B.P.” (batting practice). This makes sense since he strives to improve low land drives every practice, which are batted balls that travel straight with a low trajectory in order to make it harder for the outfielders to catch it.
What about games? Well, being a visual learner has helped him hone his baseball abilities. In Fall 2025, Gura curated his pre-game ritual. He has started visualizing himself executing plays and performing well—such as hitting home runs—the night before.
Whether it be building grit and perseverance, or having a more positive outlook on life, Tony has been undoubtedly transformed from when he first started the sport. Baseball is truly his North star, as he states, “I don’t know where I’d be without baseball, to be honest.” Hopefully, he keeps at it and maintains a good relationship with baseball.
(Gura is currently not able to play due to an injury.)
Baseball at Moraine Valley Community College
Presently, Tyler Zunkel is the head coach of Moraine Valley Men’s baseball team. He has played the sport his whole life and has been coaching for seven years. Zunkel has stated repeatedly that practice is the most important factor to improving in baseball, which is why practices are Monday through Sunday for three hours. This excludes game days, of course. During these practices, he strives to improve the players’ skills in “the little things” such as “bunting, [a technique of hitting the ball softly so as to help the runner advance to the next base], making plays, and understanding the game.” To assist in this learning process, he consistently has the players practice batting, base running, and do fun games such as Four Corners or going against each other in competitive mini baseball games. In the short time Coach Zunkel has been here, he’s helped Moraine’s team not only go to playoffs last year, but he also enjoyed a walk-off homerun (a homerun that ends the game) during the last game he oversaw. Considering he is only in his second year coaching baseball at Moraine, these are pretty big accomplishments.
Basics of Baseball
Understanding the Field
There are four bases on each corner of the diamond-shaped field—home plate, 1st, 2nd, and 3rd bases. Centered in the middle of the infield (the sandy area) is the pitcher’s mound. Beyond the infield is a large grassy section called the outfield.
Player Positions
- Umpire – someone on neither of the competing teams who judges if a player played according to the rules and determines a hit’s legality
- Pitcher – at pitchers mound; throws the ball to the batter
- Catcher * – directly behind home plate
- 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Basemen * – near 1st, 2nd, and 3rd base in the infield respectively
- Shortstop – between 2nd and 3rd base; quickly determines where to throw the ball when it is hit to the left side of the infield and is utilized in fast-paced double plays (getting the ball from the second baseman to the first baseman)
- Left, Center, and Right Fielder * – left, center, and right side of the outfield respectively
* = attempts to catch the ball from the air or throw it to the base the batter is approaching
How a Baseball Game Works
There are nine innings which are each divided into two halves. Both of the competing teams have nine active players. During the beginning inning, one team plays the outer field (defensive team) and tries to stop the opposite team from scoring any points. Simultaneously, the opposing team comes up to bat and tries to score points by running to each base (offensive team). Later in the same half, the teams switch roles. Whoever scores more points, or rather stated as “runs”, by the time nine innings are completed is declared the winner (Burns).
In each inning the pitcher will pitch the ball towards the batter who is at the home plate. The batter will try to hit the ball with the bat to the outfield where it is difficult for the defensive players to catch. By doing so, the batter will have a longer time to run around the bases and therefore “score a run” once they eventually return to home plate. The players in the outfield will either try to catch the ball before it hits the ground, or throw the ball to the base the batter is approaching in order to get the batter out. If the batter does not hit the baseball successfully after three times, then the batter is also out. The offensive team is done batting when they reach three outs (Burns).
Source:
Burns, Ken. “Baseball for Beginners.” Baseball & the Tenth Inning | Ken Burns | PBS, 2024, www.pbs.org/kenburns/baseball/baseball-for-beginners.
