Francisco Lindor, 2011 Montverde Academy alumnus and All-Star MLB shortstop for the Cleveland Indians, presented the Eagles boys’ varsity baseball team with a variety of items in partnership with his sponsor, New Balance.
The baseball season is gearing up and Lindor ensured that his alma mater was outfitted head to toe with a hat, two uniforms jerseys, two New Balance shirts, white baseball pants, socks, shorts, warm-up joggers, and baseball cleats. The cleats are a defining item as New Balance is the best-selling premium-cleat baseball brand across sporting-goods retailers in the number of shoes sold and in total sales, according to the NPD Group. Lindor signed a contract with New Balance in 2017 and continues to be the face of the brand in its baseball cleat business this year.
“I am able to do what I love because of the opportunities I had being a student-athlete at Montverde Academy,” said Lindor. “We do things like hosting a baseball clinic here and outfitting the team because I believe that it’s important to give back. I enjoy being a part of the Montverde Academy community and serving as a mentor to the players. I told the team that I expect big things from them and want to encourage them to always work hard in both academics and baseball. They’re the next generation of players in the big league and it starts here. I’m grateful to my partner New Balance, who has helped make the team’s experience better.”
The players were excited to receive the items and immediately began trying everything on. “Having Lindor come back so often to challenge us, give us advice and cheer us on is great,” said Jake Holland, MVA Eagles catcher. “He’s an amazing player doing what I dream of doing, so being able to talk to him and get his perspective is really helpful.”
The MVA Eagles enjoyed an undefeated 2017-18 record of 25-0. Lindor had challenged the team to earn that season by offering to let the team shave his head if they did indeed, have an undefeated season. Lindor kept his word and let the team shave his head. He challenged them to set that goal again to win another crazy bet – the only time Lindor might not mind losing.
The MVA baseball season-opening game is against Avant Garde Academy (Kissimmee, Fla.) on Monday, February 18 at 3 pm.
