Justin St. Ours | Daily Press Escanaba Cubs coach Jon Bintner (center) congratulates the team after a win against Bark River July 5, 2019 in Bark River.

ESCANABA — Escanaba Cubs coach Jon Bintner has different things to worry about in this upcoming Upper Peninsula Under-19 League baseball season, but one thing he doesn’t have to worry about is the passion for the game from his players.

“They’re just excited to be out there,” he said. “We’re trying to keep it minimal and not overdo their arms. We had one kid do really well in his inning. He wanted to go back out there but I had to say, ‘Nope, sorry. Save some of that for our next practice or this weekend.’ That passion and excitement for the game is still there. They’re happy to be doing something with sports.”

One of the main issues for the Cubs, however, is the lack of a lead-in season for the players — and the lack of sports during the spring season altogether.

“They are definitely out of baseball shape a little bit, but it shouldn’t be too bad,” Bintner said. “We’re just getting some reps more or less and working on basic stuff. We just had a little scrimmage where we saw some live pitching, so it can give us some idea of what we’re going to come into contact with over the weekend.”

Compounding the loss of the spring season was the cancellation of the American Legion season, and the formation of a new U.P. league to just get out onto the field. Additionally, the league is being run cooperatively between the coaches for the eight teams involved.

“It’s just different because you’re used to having a program in front of you,” Bintner said. “All the little things you take for granted that a high school program goes through. (Normally), they’ve already done their base running, learning how to field, and done countless hours of hitting drills in the gym. They didn’t get to do that this year, so we’re working a little more on this thing.”

The Cubs have already put in a few practices and are ready to face the challenge of the month-long season, which ends July 23-26 in Iron Mountain.

“Last week we had three (practices),” Bintner said. “We’ve been doing it every other day. We’re not overdoing it. We’re not pushing it too hard. It’s just understanding that everyone’s busy and it’s summer.

“We’re going to get a lot of action in a short period of time, so hopefully our arms can handle it.”

Esky begins its season at home Friday against Bark River to open up a league-wide, weekend round-robin tournament.

The schedule:

June 19 — Bark River

June 20 — Copper Country

June 21 — Negaunee, Ishpeming

June 26 — Bark River

June 29 — at Coleman, Wis.

June 30 — Iron Mountain

July 1 — Menominee

July 3 — Gladstone

July 6 — at Iron Mountain

July 7 — at Gladstone

July 8 — at Marquette

July 10 — Sheboygan

July 11 — Sheboygan, Sault Ste. Marie

July 14 — at Bark River

July 21 — at Menominee

July 23-26 — League tournament at Iron Mountain