Former local little leaguers return to the community as the Squeeze

The return of the Winter Garden Squeeze for the 2026 season means 33 collegiate baseball players will return to the baseball fields of West Orange County. Summer league coaches and general managers strategically chose those players after their spring collegiate seasons from teams across the NCAA, NAIA and Junior College programs. 

Although they will be united as one Squeeze team, the players came to the team from all different walks of life. Many call cities across Florida their hometown, including Tampa, DeLand, Clearwater and more. One player, David Freitas, joins Winter Garden’s team from Carabobo, Venezuela. 

But not all of the Squeeze’s roster is stepping into West Orange County and the deeply rooted baseball culture within its borders for the first time. Six players grew up within the Little Leagues and now prepare to represent their hometown in the big leagues. 

As the season begins, let’s take a moment to introduce those players who forever will remember their first ball leagues. 

Joshua Bell

JERSEY NO: 22

YEAR: Junior 

POSITION: Infielder 

SCHOOL: Florida A&M University 

Joshua Bell’s baseball journey began when he was 8 years old. He initially was interested in basketball, but his friend Max encouraged him to give baseball a swing so he did at Winter Garden Little League. The support of the people around him and his parents encouraged Bell to stick with it, enough to the point where he left basketball in his past. 

“I feel like I’ve grown a lot, seeing a lot of different people come in and out of the game and knowing that this game’s not going to last forever and it’s going to end at some point,” he said. “Having that kind of vulnerability to understand that and just kind of take it all in really helps me.” 

One of his first coaches, Bryan Malenius, shaped the way baseball should be played in Bell’s eyes, and he forever will be grateful for the early lessons that made him fall in love with the game. He took those lessons in Little League and applied them to his success at West Orange High, where in his senior year he led the team with 20 runs batted in, six doubles and recorded a .457 on base percentage. 

Bell grew up a Florida State University fan and when the neighboring school, Florida A&M, offered him a baseball scholarship, he knew it was a perfect fit and now has completed two years as a Rattler. 

Growing up in Winter Garden meant he was surrounded by the Squeeze, and returning to play for the team feels like a “full circle moment” for him. His best friend from high school, Zachary Moore, even is working as one of the Squeeze’s interns, and being able to celebrate the year with Moore and his teammates brings a new level of excitement for Bell. 

Rylee Gibson

JERSEY NO: 17

YEAR: Sophomore 

POSITION: Right-handed pitcher 

SCHOOL: The Citadel 

Rylee Gibson moved to Winter Garden in 2013 from Colorado when he was 7 and had never played T-ball. He joined the Winter Garden Little League and remained with the league until he was 12, playing on the All-Star teams and Tournament of Champions teams. 

Early on, he knew if he ever made it to the college level, he wanted to come back and play for his hometown community. The people in the community are who allowed Gibson to connect with travel ball organizations and help him grow into a player that was able to go to college. 

They also taught him how to grow as a leader. He was homeschooled in eighth grade but attended Foundation Academy and played for the Lions’ varsity team from eighth grade to his senior year. Being a younger guy on a team full of older players allowed Gibson to become a leader when he was a junior and senior. 

Gibson’s sophomore year is when he really began to look into camps and settled on going to a military college, which is why he ended up at The Citadel. He was looking for any place with a good ROTC program, and everything worked out perfectly with The Citadel. 

“It’s definitely been pretty surreal — achieving all the dreams and goals that I’ve had since I was a little kid, wanting to play in college, wanting to play back with some of these guys and obviously not everyone makes it in this game and it’s a pretty hard game,” he said.

Keith Holden

JERSEY NO: 5

YEAR: Sophomore 

POSITION: Right-handed pitcher 

SCHOOL: Rollins College 

Keith Holden’s introduction to baseball began with T-ball in Delaney Park. As he grew, his family moved to Winter Garden and he began playing for Winter Garden Little League at 7 years old until he was 12. Through the league, he met new people and had a different team every year, which helped in his development. 

As the Little Leaguers grew together and got to know each other, Holden said the competition steadily rose because they all wanted to beat their friends. 

Through playing high school ball at West Orange, Holden was on the same team as Nicholas Rich and Joshua Bell. Being the youngest of the three, Holden watched the two graduate and announce their commitment to play at the college level, never thinking he’d play on the same team as them again. But now, through the Squeeze, the impossible turned into a reality. 

“It’s very exciting because I’ve lived here for so long, and being able to represent my hometown feels good,” he said. 

Cael Reish

JERSEY NO: 18

YEAR: Sophomore 

POSITION: Outfielder 

SCHOOL: Flagler University

Cael Reish grew up a part of Winter Garden’s crosstown rival league, Windermere Little League. The league introduced him to different positions and ways to attack the ball and allowed him to create connections in Winter Garden and Windermere. 

“I just fell in love with the game,” he said. “I didn’t really think that any other sport was really interesting to me as much. Baseball was just kind of everything, it gave me new openings in life and taught me valuable lessons that I can live by.” 

He attended Montverde Academy but transferred to Mount Dora Christian Academy his senior year. There, he played 29 games, recording a .352 batting average, .429 OBP, 37 hits, 20 RBIs and 30 runs. 

Returning to Winter Garden to play for the Squeeze, with many teammates who Reish has known for years, has helped them instantly bring up their chemistry. Reish said chemistry is a huge part of the game, and being able to quickly adapt and grow together has made the transition easier. 

Nicholas Rich

JERSEY NO: 35

YEAR: Senior 

POSITION: Right-handed pitcher

SCHOOL: Embry-Riddle University 

Nicholas Rich first picked up a bat in T-ball when he was 3 years old and never put it down. He joined the Winter Garden Little League and said it set the foundation for him. The league taught him all of the basics, like holding a bat, the technical rules and everything he needed to be a successful athlete, but it also taught him how to be a part of a team and work well with others. 

As Rich grew, he quickly learned pitching would be his route. He fell in love with the motion and the mechanics of it. His freshman year of high school was at Windermere Preparatory School, but COVID-19 shut the season down and he joined TNLX Academy, which is where the Squeeze now practices. His junior year, he went to West Orange but reenrolled at TNLX to close out his high school career. 

Returning to TNLX now as a collegiate player means a lot to him and it has been special to see how the academy has grown to now have turfed fields. Growing up he watched the Squeeze play and always would tell himself, “I want to be like them one day.” 

Last season, his dream became a reality when he was selected for the Squeeze’s roster, but he struggled with injuries and was unable to play. This summer, Rich is injury-free and can’t wait to step onto the field to represent his hometown with his brothers with whom he grew up. 

Jack Sanchez

JERSEY NO: 37

YEAR: Senior 

POSITION: Left-handed pitcher 

SCHOOL: Keiser University 

Jack Sanchez grew up in Texas but came to Winter Garden in fourth grade and quickly joined the Winter Garden Little League. Like the others, it brought him an early love for the game but also quickly taught him that pitching was his strength. Sanchez said he never really could hit the ball, but his arm caught the attention of his coaches and they honed in on it.

Those skills and training sessions translated over when he attended Windermere High. Sanchez played for Windermere’s 2023 team, which went to the regional finals, and as a senior pitcher he played 12 games with a .857 fielding percentage. 

Sanchez went on to play for Palm Beach State and most recently transferred to Keiser University for his junior college season. He recorded his season high of five strikeouts against Webber International, adding to his 13 for the season in seven games. 

Being a member of the Squeeze is allowing Sanchez to reunite with teammates he hasn’t talked to in five years.