In a small Annapolis Middle School weight room, Officer Martin Freeman of the Anne Arundel County police is channeling his love of sports to 10 boys and girls awaiting their growth spurt.

They're not generally fans of gym class, but they stretch and lift and sweat after classes for Freeman, who is assigned to the school as its resource officer.

He also has become a role model and mentor since arriving in the fall and starting the after-school fitness program.

Freeman, 44, looks every bit the professional baseball player he once was, cutting a lean and powerful figure reminiscent of a young Barry Bonds as he demonstrates proper form and offers encouragement.

"He's awesome," says sixth-grader Joseph Monahan. "He's been doing a lot for the school."

Freeman's success in his new role, as much as in his old one on the baseball diamond, led to his induction last night into the Hall of Fame at his alma mater, Arundel High School. The honor was also bestowed on five other alumni, three teams and two boosters.

"We've had so many terrific athletes in all our sports that [athletic achievement] is not enough," says longtime baseball coach Bernie Walter, who is a member of the Hall of Fame selection committee.

Freeman attributes his accomplishments to confidence and athleticism.

"I know I'm a winner, I know I can do things a certain way, and that's how I believe I've become successful," he says.

Freeman does not play baseball these days, but he spent much of his life doing little else.

His baseball career began at age 9, when he joined the Little League at the military base in Germany where his father was stationed. He also remembers the impact of Hank Aaron's quest for the career home run record about that same time. He still idolizes Aaron, calling him a "model Hall of Famer."

Freeman's family settled at Fort Meade when Freeman was in the eighth grade, and he soon started playing at Arundel High School, where Walter's teams had gained a reputation for excellence.

He played multiple positions and led the team to a state championship in 1981. He also learned a mental aspect of the game from Walter, gaining the confident, winning attitude that he said he continues to apply in his life.

Walter is not surprised to hear that his message stuck.

"Our expectations are for people to be excellent at whatever they do," he says.

Freeman went on to play at the University of Maryland, making All-ACC second team in his junior year and being drafted in the third round by the Detroit Tigers in 1984.

The journey ended there. Freeman says he never adjusted to the intense individual competition in the minor leagues. After three years, the Tigers released him.

"What happened? What can I do? What can I do?" he recalls thinking as he drove back to Maryland.

The sudden end of his baseball career - the only one he had ever considered - sent Freeman into a crisis. Over the next few years, he earned his degree, tried a number of jobs and managed a McDonald's restaurant as he sought a way to fill the void baseball had occupied in his life.

Freeman says he "fell into the police" at the recommendation of one of his brothers. He had never considered becoming an officer but thought police work fit the attributes he had learned in baseball.

"I did know at one time that to be an officer of course you had to be in good shape, you had to be able to think on your feet, and you had to be part of a team."

Freeman worked the midnight shift for 17 years, patrolling Eastern District and later the Western District before becoming a school resource officer assigned to Annapolis Middle, a role that combines public safety with public relations.

Lt. J.D. Batten, his supervisor, said he looked at Freeman's temperament and demeanor - his reputation as firm but fair - when choosing him for the program. Freeman's athletic background, Batten said, makes it easier for students to connect with him and see him for more than his uniform, a key goal of the school resource officer program.

"Marty does a great job of getting those young men to talk to him," he says.

Freeman, who is black, says he keeps in mind his potential to be a role model to Annapolis Middle School's many black students, particularly the many boys coming from homes without fathers.

The after-school fitness class, which Freeman runs with gym teacher Cleveland Reynolds, usually attracts about 20 students. Freeman hopes that those who aren't natural athletes can gain the confidence that comes through athleticism and develop into more self-assured adults.

"These years - 12 or 13 years old - these kids are going to make that decision," Freeman says. "They're going to make that decision whether or not they want to become an athlete, whether or not they're going to be confident enough to do the right thing instead of the wrong thing."

His induction into the Arundel High School Sports Hall of Fame brought back the baseball achievements that he had put behind him.

"More and more, as people started to hear about it and congratulate me, it really started to mean a lot more to me, that people remembered what I did," he says.