On MLB’s opening week ahead of the 2024 season, the alma mater of Los Angeles Dodgers star first baseman Freddie Freeman also got a new beginning.
El Modena High School (Orange, Calif.) unveiled its new Freddie Freeman Clubhouse, courtesy partly due to a $500,000 donation from the 2020 MVP to the program.
The 1,440-square-foot building includes a locker room, a team meeting area with monitors, a coaches’ office, and larger batting cages.
The Dodgers and Freeman posted pictures to Instagram, where you can see inside the locker room and the large mural of Freeman in El Modena’s Vanguard uniform. The mural includes a list of Freeman’s accolades, according to the Orange County Register.
View this post on Instagram
The project cost $1.6 million, according to the OC Register. Freeman’s donation of $500,000 was the largest in Orange Unified School District history from an individual private donor, the district said in the original press release, and was confirmed to the Register. The district covered $1.1 million.
Freeman played two seasons of varsity baseball for El Modena, according to MaxPreps. He was an elite batter and pitcher, hitting .417 with five home runs and 10 stolen bases while posting a 6-1 record on the mound with a 1.27 ERA and 59 strikeouts in 44 innings. A pitcher/third baseman, Freeman was named the Orange County Register’s 2007 Player of the Year. He was a second-round selection by the Atlanta Braves that summer.
El Modena went 14-12-1 last season after a 22-10 season the year before.