Facility Features

Batting Facility Feature: NextUp Baseball Academy, Florida

Installing Turf, Batting Cages, & 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 & 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 ordered a full supply of baseball & 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 and 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 season 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 Academy

14152 63rd Way N.

Clearwater, FL 33760

Phone – (727) 216-6883

http://www.nextupacademy.com/

7 Comments

  • Max Jones

    I really like the idea of having a baseball turf mat for indoor or at home practices! My son is really into baseball, So I’ve set up a batting cage for him on the side of our home, but I think that a baseball turf mat would be the perfect addition so he doesn’t keep wearing out the grass. I’ll have to see what my wife thinks of replacing the grass with turf for our son’s love of baseball! Thanks for the suggestion!

  • Dustin Phillips

    Good afternoon. I am entertaining the thought of putting a metal building in my backyard and would like to have enough room where I can put 2 or 3 batting cages but also have room for a small bathroom. My daughter plays softball and son plays baseball. would you have a few floorplans that would work for a 50 x 50 or a 50 x 40 building? Thanks in advance

  • Kevin Marner

    I am a high school baseball coach and have an idea of building a morton building that ranges from 50×50 to 50×80. Is there anyway you could accommodate and have floor plans that resemble 2 batting cages and a 70′ pitching alley. Would also need a small bathroom. Thanks

  • Justin yates

    Yes I’m currently looking to build and do an indoor baseball and softball facility. I liked the design u had on site and was trying to get some prices?

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