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Varsity Maine sent reporters to South Portland and Hall-Dale softball and Lisbon baseball practices on Thursday. Here’s what we learned in Lisbon:

Every spring, Randy Ridley knows that the first two weeks of Lisbon baseball practice will have to happen indoors. At least the first two weeks. Even if all the snow is melted, the infield is usually still frozen and the outfield is too muddy.

Cramming 25 players into the gym and having enough space to not get hit by a bat or a ball is one challenge. Making sure each player is staying focused and correctly working on their fundamentals instead of just forming one long line for the next drill is another. Add in the fact that Ridley is still looking for a JV coach this season, and practices can get a little hectic.

So the Greyhounds skipper, who is entering his 26th season with the program, is trying something new: giving up a little control.

“A lot of our practices, we’re just breaking up into smaller groups and Coach is kind of letting the players take (the lead at drill stations), give them responsibility to get done what they need to do,” senior utility player Malachi Madore said. “It’s a lot more free flowing, (you) get a lot more done that way. … This was our second or third day testing it out, but I think it’s gone well.”

Here are couple other things that are new about this season of Lisbon baseball:

• The hats. Boxes of fresh black-and-red script-L ballcaps were quickly opened and passed around the gym.

• The practice equipment. During the offseason, Ridley came across a YouTube Short video of the MaxBP machine, which can automatically throw small Wiffle Balls with different breaks and speed, so he made the purchase. There was also a colorful assortment of club-looking weighted bats for players to use for their swing speed. Jacob Fitzsimmons, a senior utility player, called the 50-ounce heavy bats “pretty neat.”

• The positions. The Greyhounds lost several pitchers to graduation, so players who may not have spent a lot of time on the mound in years past will be asked to step up. Ridley expects “utility” to be written on the roster repeatedly, as he wants his players ready to switch positions seamlessly if someone hits their pitch count or weather forces back-to-back-to-back games.

One thing that isn’t changing is the strike zone. Major League Baseball instituted the ABS (automated ball-strike) system this season, but technology isn’t quite ready to make an impact on the Maine high school circuit. Still, Madore and Fitzsimmons think that would be a cool addition to the game, although who would be allowed to tap their head — the sign to request a review of a call — is a different story.

“I wouldn’t let Jake use any of the challenges, I would let (junior catcher) Spencer (Franks) behind the plate run that,” Madore said. “I wouldn’t challenge (on the mound), either.”

“Yeah, Spencer would put a funny look or something,” Fitzsimmons added.