verdugo288

The purpose of this Blog is to acknowledge the great contributions to this Team that were made by the greatest Baseball characters to ever don a uniform!….The Loyal Players of the Verdugo Hills Post 288 Baseball Legacy.  We had the Greatest Players who played in the Greatest Games ever played!!!  The purpose of this Blog is to tell the stories that were going on behind the scenes as we slowly built the most feared team in the 20th District.  From our first season in 1990 where we played ALL 22 games on the road and finished 12-10…..just missing the Playoffs, to our final season where we finished the season 18-2 (losing both games by ONE run) and winning the Division Title.   

I cannot even describe in words how grateful I am to have had the opportunity to coach this Team.  To me, it was kind of like a spiritual journey.  I have thought long and hard over the years about how close we came to the ultimate glory we all were chasing.  I have thought about the Warriors who played for us who gave everything they had, and then some.  I have thought about all the funny moments we had, and the glorious triumphs we experienced.  

I have thought long and hard about how it all ended bitterly, yet not in defeat.  There was a very simple formula that the League enforced when the Verdugo train was rolling full steam.  Start pulling players off of our roster or start removing players from the game(s).  And as I have thought about this throughout the years…I have come to realize that it really was the ONLY WAY they could have stopped us.  We just didn’t fit the “Mold” of what the higher-ups in the League wanted us to be…and they acted accordingly.   And THANK GOD we never “sold our souls” to take our exciting brand of Baseball to the next level.  We remained true to ourselves through it all!!!  That’s why, Gentlemen……we were….and always will be…….. THE KINGS OF AMERICAN LEGION BASEBALL!!!!!!!!!!! 

I have thought about my role in all of it.  And the truth be told…I wouldn’t have changed a god-damned thing.  We were all on a journey of finding out who we were and what we could become, not just on a Baseball field…but in LIFE.   And I am confident that the times we spent on the field together played a big part in shaping us into exactly who we are today.  All of you guys were great kids in my book, and you have all become great men today.

I have thought about the sacrifices you guys made just to wear our uniform.  I have thought about the great rituals and traditions that were created, and how we never, ever backed down to anyone.

I have thought about the blood and sweat and dedication that it took for us to rise to the top.  And I have thought about how much you guys loved the game. 

And most importantly…I have thought about how lucky I am to have had the privilege to run this thing. 

So many years I have thought about it.  I am tired of thinking about it……….

Now, I just want to TELL EVERYONE about it.  Because it really is the greatest story NEVER TOLD.

I walked away from it in 1994.  I don’t think I’ve even WATCHED another baseball game since.  What’s there to see?  I’ve already SEEN the Greatest Team to ever play the game!!!

I have told people through the years that since I stopped coaching this Team that “I don’t miss it at all….not ONE iota.”

The truth is….I’d give just about anything on this earth to coach you guys in ONE MORE GAME……….

I heard someone say once that “You cannot die if the music is still in you.”

Well, the music this Ballclub made is and always will be in me.  And That’s the Purpose of this Blog:  To let the rest of the world hear it!!!

All I can say now is what Gene Hackman said to his ballclub just before tip-off of the final game in the movie “Hoosiers.”   I probably should have said this to you guys long ago….but I’ll say it now.

I love you guys.