Season Interrupted: Mission Viejo’s Hayden Cody has Angels dreams
Name: Hayden Cody
School: Mission Viejo
Sport: Baseball, pitcher
Key stats: Was 2-0 with a 1.00 ERA
Fall plans: Will attend Cal State Northridge
A look at the high school sport standouts whose seasons were cut short by the coronavirus outbreak.
On the abrupt end to the season:
“When I found out, I was with my coach in his class. He [said] ‘Hayden, come over for a second.’ He told me it’s probably going to get canceled, and baseball is my life. I took it straight to the heart. I was bummed, low energy. I was in denial. ‘No, this is not going to happen.’ ”
On life without sports:
“I like all sports. ‘SportsCenter’ is my main channel. The last 50 days has been awkward having nothing on to talk about.”
How he stays in shape:
“I have a couple medicine balls I’ll throw into a net. I also have a buddy who can meet me at a park to play catch. My travel ball coach is sending me lifts to do every day.”
What new things he’s discovered with his free time:
“We just got a new dog. I’m picking up dog training. He’s potty trained, can sit and knows his name.”
The Los Angeles University High School volleyball standout lost two full seasons but gained a healthy perspective: ‘The big lesson is to be more responsible for myself,’ he said.
On what he’s learned:
“You never know how anything in life is going to end up. Things can change in the blink of an eye like the season. I’m blessed with what I have. I’ve learned how good my work ethic was. Not having all my resources to work out, I’ve had to dig deep in the bag of my tricks and see what I can pull. I’ve learned mental toughness.”
Where he sees himself in 10 years:
“I hope in the majors. I would like to play for the Angels and be like Jered Weaver.”
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