Many people throughout the country have missed the crack of the bat and smell of the freshly cut grass at the old ballpark during the coronavirus pandemic.

Perhaps no one in Blanco County has missed it more than Kyle Gray.

The Blanco High School graduate and former West Virginia University Mountaineer was in the midst of spring training for the New York Yankees organization when the coronavirus hit and changed the world as everyone knew it. On a mid-March late Friday morning in Florida, Gray and other members of the Yankees organization were told they’d be in quarantine for up to 14 days after a one of their teammates tested positive for the virus.

“It was pretty crazy,” he said.

They were about halfway through that day’s workouts when they learned everything would come to a halt. After weeks of training for the upcoming season, they were told to leave the facility, so Gray and his three roommates headed back to their Airbnb rental.

Though many people in Florida at that time went on as things were normal, it was different for Gray.

“We couldn’t really be around people or anything,” he said.

Gray said they were allowed to return to the Yankees’ facility daily to pick up meals, but were encouraged to limit any time they needed to be in the public, for things such as shopping, to times when stores wouldn’t be as busy. They also received daily updates from the Yankees organization.

Gray and his teammates were released from quarantine March 25 – his 23rd birthday – which he spent driving 16 hours from Florida to Texas.

It took Gray a while to find a routine once he returned from spring training. He spent time in Houston working out at his fiancé’s, just trying to keep in shape. While in Blanco, he asked BHS baseball coach Bryan Wyatt if he could get in the batting cage and work out at the school’s facilities, but they were shut down due to the pandemic.

He now works out five to six days a week in Houston with three other members of the Yankees organization. At first, they were able to train together, while social distancing, before things began to open up more. Since then, they’ve been able to face live pitching and add other work outs, as well.

“We’re expected to be ready whenever they call us,” Gray said. “The organization trusts each of us to go home and keep in shape. We don’t know when we’ll get the call to come back.”

Gray said being able to train with other members of the Yankees organization has been crucial to keep up his readiness.

“I think it’s huge to have this opportunity to get guys to throw with, hit with, train with, to have guys to help push me, to keep sharp and keep up with workouts,” he said. “I consider myself lucky to be able to train. Others aren’t so lucky. It’s very convenient here.”

For instance, two of the players Gray trains with in Houston are from the northeast – Massachusetts and New Hampshire – and they wouldn’t be able to train like they do now if they were in their home states.

Gray said the players hear rumors on when they might be able to return, like everyone else, but nothing has been set yet by the Yankees organization. Gray regularly talks to strength and nutrition staff from the organization, who help with things such as what kind of workouts he should be doing and what he should be eating.

“This way we don’t have to make everything up for ourselves or figure it out ourselves. It makes a big difference,” he said.

There’s also a more social aspect in the way the Yankees keep in touch with their players. The organization sends out short videos twice daily to allow players to get to better know staff members, such as coaches, strength staff, nutritionists and others. In the videos, they talk about their families, hobbies and what they do within the organization. The videos generally last between 30 seconds and a minute, Gray said, and helps everyone to get to know others better.

This is Gray’s third season in professional baseball. After three stellar seasons at WVU, he was selected by the Yankees in the 18th round of the 2018 draft. He played his first season that year for the short season Class A club in Staten Island, New York. He continued to advance through the Yankees’ farm system last year, playing for the Class A Charleston RiverDogs in South Carolina, before moving to the organization’s advanced Class A team, the Tampa Tarpons, in Florida.

“You miss it. It’s a part of my life, everybody’s life,” Gray said of the disappearance of sports during the pandemic. “For it to all go away, it’s kind of a blur. It doesn’t seem real.”

The former Blanco High School Panther said he misses things like the long bus rides to build bonds with teammates, in addition to the game itself. Not playing the game he loves, which is now also his profession, has left an “empty feeling” during these past two months.

“I’ve been doing it for 18 years or more, since I could walk,” Gray said. “I play the game I love. I’m ready for it to come back.”