Dennis Maffezzoli
| Special to The Post
Mia Kruspe plays MLB Girls Baseball Breakthrough Series
Lake Worth Christian senior Mia Kruspe took part in the MLB Girls Baseball Breakthrough Series to continue her baseball aspirations.
Special to The Post
Mia Kruspe, a high school senior, attended the Major League Baseball Girls Baseball Breakthrough Series for the second time.She focused on improving her outfield and first base skills with guidance from high-level coaches.Kruspe has played varsity baseball since seventh grade and aspires to play at the college level.The event highlighted the growing culture and competitiveness within girls’ baseball.
VERO BEACH – In her second stint at the Major League Baseball Girls Baseball Breakthrough Series, Mia Kruspe got down to specifics.
“Looking to, most importantly, widen my knowledge, especially since there are areas I need to work on,” Kruspe said. “This is just the best place to work on it, because they have such high coaches and high knowledge and I’ll be able to tap into it. They have the resources for that.”
After competing with 31 other girls from around the country Friday and Saturday, the Lake Worth Christian senior accomplished what she set out to do.
“Yes, I got a lot of tweaks that I needed to take home and use them and continue to develop and keep those in my daily routine,” Kruspe said.
Getting extended work in the outfield and at first base during the two days, Kruspe played center field, right field and first base during the six-inning scrimmage that wrapped up the events at the Jackie Robinson Training Complex, formerly Dodgertown.
“For me, arm strength from the outfield, positioning-wise always can be tweaked or better, whether it’s taking your first step to the left or right, switching your hips,” she said. “The extra edge would be elevating my game.”
She flawlessly made all the plays defensively in the scrimmage. At the plate, the right-handed hitter singled to right field and walked in her two appearances.
More importantly, she received valuable knowledge from the 10 coaches and instructors to use in future endeavors.
“My biggest takeaway is the culture,” Kruspe said. “There is such a huge culture with girls baseball, especially now being so many as there is now. But just being able to feed off each other and get that energy and get that competitiveness that you can’t get anywhere else.”
Kruspe has been playing varsity baseball, not softball, at Lake Worth Christian Academy since she was in seventh grade.
Also a right-handed pitcher, she made her first mound appearance in high school as an eighth grader. Throwing a fastball, curve and changeup she struck out 13 in 12 ⅔ innings that season.
This past season for Lake Worth Christian, Kruspe batted .259 with a pair of triples and pitched in six games with 18 strikeouts in 12 innings.
She did not make a mound appearance in the Breakthrough Series. Instead Kruspe saved her pitching for a college showcase Sunday at Palm Beach Gardens High School.
“Super excited to get my innings in pitching-wise and super excited to get my hitting,” she said. “Being in front of college coaches is my biggest thing right now. Super excited.”
The 5-foot-6, 160-pounder has aspirations of playing college baseball. She has received interest and offers from Division III and NAIA schools.
All the recent knowledge and exposure only can help Kruspe, who plans to study biology and minor in exercise science in college.
“I’m looking more on the medical side and to be a sports physician for sports teams,” she said.
Also attending the Girls Baseball Breakthrough Series last year in Vero Beach, Kruspe applied this year and again was accepted after competing in the EDI (Girls Baseball Elite Development Invitational, a multi-day camp which hosted 64 girls baseball players in a development-focused event.
She prefers baseball over softball, which she played in the past.
“I played for a year. It wasn’t something I was interested in,” Kruspe said of softball.
In baseball, she said, “I like that you can be free. You can show so much personality in you individually, but you can also be that hype man for your teammates as well.”
Kruspe, who also plays travel baseball, has her own website that documents her accomplishments and beliefs.
“There’s a magazine, Urban Magazine, that reached out and said we want to put something together for you,” she said. “I was like yeah, why not. Get something out there.”
Away from baseball, Kruspe is a normal teenager.
“I’m very much a school person,” she said. “ I like hanging out with friends and going to the movies. I’m more of a homebody. I like reading.”