What does it take to be Cardinal Strong?

The Prince William Cardinals have established a set of team values, outlined below, for each of our players and coaches to follow. These values ensure we are meeting our mission as an organization, while also providing a framework for our players, as they develop both on and off the field.

 1. We are a Team.

• Baseball is a team sport. Success will always be measured by what we accomplish together.

• When the season ends, our individual statistics will be secondary. Our measure of success will be what we accomplished together, and what we went through together to get there.

2. We Will Always Hustle.

• A team that always hustles sets a tone. Nothing will come easy for our opponents. You will need to play your best to beat us.

• We will always hustle on the field and we will always hustle off.

• Countless plays throughout the season will be determined by hustle or the lack thereof. Runs will be scored and games will be won or lost as a result.

• There will be no easy plays for you. We will always give everything we have. We will be aggressive, but we won’t be careless.

• You will earn every base and every run you score on us. We will hustle to every ball hit in the field.

• When the game is over, we want our opponents to always remember us because of the way we play — and a primary focus of this will be our hustle.

3. We Will Be Aware.

• We will know the count.

• We will know the number of outs.

• We will know our role and the responsibilities we need to execute.

• With a focus on awareness, we will be one step ahead, prepared for anything that will come our way.

4. We Will Be Mentally Tough.

• We will play at a high level, and we will play other similarly talented teams. As a result, games will often be won and lost by the team that can handle adversity.

• Baseball is an emotional game, but we will know how to handle failure. We will also know how to handle success.

5. We Will Never Quit.

• We will play every inning that is given to us. Any inning that is played without full effort is a wasted inning.

• If you are up big on us, score some more. Please do. Because we will not quit. We will come back.

• As long as there is another out left, we will always have a chance, no matter what the deficit.

6. We Will Respect…

Ours Opponents, Their Coaches and Fans.

• The other team is just like us. They simply dress in a different uniform.

• No matter their record or past performance, any team can win any given game.

• We will appreciate our opponents’ big hits and great plays. We will thank their coaches for the challenge.

• We will not chant, scream or sing in an effort to distract them.

• We understand that the other fans are passionate for their team just as our fans are passionate for us.

The Umpires.

• The umpires dedicate countless hours to this game, with little appreciation. There is rarely a mention when they make a good call, but everyone is quick to pass blame when an apparent incorrect call is made.

• Being an umpire is not an easy job. Our players will not argue with calls. Our parents will not complain. And our coaches will discuss calls calmly.

The Game.

• This is so much more than a game.

• We will respect baseball’s history and the players who came before us. We will appreciate that our fathers and grandfathers — and their fathers and grandfathers — played on some of these same fields, or one like them. Baseball bonds us all.

• We will play the game with the honor and passion it deserves.

One Another.

• We are teammates. We are friends. And we are a baseball family.

• We recognize how difficult it is to go through a slump or make an error. We will support one another through the toughest of times because we will always succeed and fail as a team.

Ourselves.

• We — as individuals — will always keep our heads up. We will have high expectations of ourselves, but we will not expect perfection.

• We will not beat ourselves up or think negatively about ourselves.

7. We Will be Humble.

• Baseball is an exciting game. Nothing in life can be compared to a big walk-off hit or final championship-clinching out.

• When we win, we will appreciate the fight our opponents gave us. We will shake their hands, look them in the eye and sincerely thank them for a good game.

• When will be passionate. We will celebrate. But we will not cross the line.

• We will also experience heartbreak. We will lose on a walk-off hit. We will hit that final out of a championship game.

• When that happens, it will be easy to drop our heads. But we will appreciate the fight our opponents gave us. We will let them celebrate. And we will handle the loss gracefully.

8. We Will Trust the Process.

• We will work hard at practices and be prepared mentally

• We will learn from our mistakes

• We will hold ourselves accountable  

• When we step on the field, we will be ready.