Batting Facility Feature: NextUp Baseball Academy, Florida

Installing Turf, Batting Cages, and Training Equipment at an Indoor Baseball Facility in Florida

The state of Florida is known for producing some of the top baseball and softball talent in the entire country. As athletes specialize more and more in the sport, they need somewhere to train every day throughout the year. In Clearwater, FL, the newest place to hone these skills is NextUp Baseball Academy. NextUp opened in February of 2017, delivering a 4,000-foot indoor baseball facility that allows players to train all year without having to fight the heat, rain, or other elements in Central Florida. NextUp Baseball Academy worked with Keith Burke at On Deck Sports to deliver a world-class facility to the athletes in the area. “Gary was great to work with and wanted to build a top-notch facility,” Burke said when asked about the project. "He had already secured a building and wanted to make sure it was a place where baseball and softball players could get out of the Florida heat and rain." NextUp went with Stadium Padded Turf for their facility, choosing one of the strongest artificial turf products on the market. The nylon artificial turf strands can withstand the rigors of everyday use. “We are very happy with the turf, and our players love the turf and the facility,” NextUp’s owner, Gary Woodward, said when asked about his new turf. “We wanted a padded turf that would last many years,” which made Stadium the easy choice. NextUp Academy went with a full-shell batting cage with retracting divider curtains—the top indoor batting cage option from On Deck Sports. This allows the coaches to train baseball and softball athletes in individual hitting tunnels or open up the cage for field work. The durable nylon netting creates a safe, long-lasting barrier between those practicing and the spectator areas in the facility. We upgraded from the normal #36 netting to the more durable #60 netting to ensure the highest level of safety for the facility,” Burke said when asked about the batting cage setup. "Gary wanted to maximize his space, so we went with three 15' wide batting tunnels and the option for a 70' pitching lane. This allows NextUp to work with multiple players on multiple skills at the same time." Not only was NextUp Baseball Academy able to buy all their artificial turf, netting, and rubber flooring from On Deck Sports, but they also ordered a full supply of baseball and softball training equipment. The one-stop shopping experience was a factor that helped Gary make the decision to go with On Deck Sports. Burke suggested the award-winning PVTee batting tee, the Batting Mat Pro, Premium Series L-Screen, Sock Screen, and more to make sure NextUp delivered the top training experience to its athletes. NextUp has experienced great success since opening, taking advantage of the preseason lead-up to baseball and softball seasons in Florida. “We definitely would use On Deck again,” Woodward said when asked about using On Deck Sports again in the future. ”This is obviously a major purchase. Our installation crew was excellent and finished the installation on the date promised, which was important so we could hold our grand opening on the date planned.”

NextUp Baseball Aademy

14152 63rd Way N.

Clearwater, FL 33760

Phone - (727) 216-6883

https://www.nextupacademy.com/