With the outfield behind him filled with the 550 players who make up the 42 teams playing this year, and the bleachers before him packed with parents and siblings, 12-year-old Eli Cortez stood on home plate of Field 1 and recited the Little League Pledge. “I will play fair and strive to win. But win or lose, I will always do my best,” he concluded.
“I asked his mother if he needed a copy to read from,” said Hollister Little League President Damon Felice, “But she told me he had memorized it by heart.”
The players and the crowd were at Veterans Park in Hollister on March 11 for the opening night of Little League, an organization that celebrates friendship and sportsmanship as much as it does victories on the diamond.
The occasion was made more special because, between the rains and COVID-19, Opening Night has not been held since 2017. With only four of the teams playing that night, for most of the kids the event was about donning their uniforms and jerseys for the first time—the cleanest those clothes are ever going to be again—and waving to their parents as they enter the field.
As each team was announced, they were escorted onto the field by players on the San Benito High School varsity and junior varsity baseball squads. Together, they ran from an entrance in the back of the field, around third base to home, then around again to first base until they found their designated spots to sit for the ceremonies.
When all the teams were announced, the program turned to honor some adults who have helped over the years in this all-volunteer organization.
A permanent marker was unveiled in memory of George Ocampo, who died in 2019. Ocampo coached games from 2001-2008, long after his son had aged out of the program. Longtime board members Kim Marquez and Richard McAbee also received plaques.
Past Little League President Carleton Pace received a special honor, serving as catcher for the season’s first pitch, thrown by his son Jackson Pace, who pitches for the SBHS baseball team. Jackson is a veteran of the Hollister Little League and has returned periodically to umpire games.
The real excitement of the evening, however, is that the season has begun and without the restrictions forced on the league since the start of the pandemic.
“We have been looking forward to the Opening Night,” said Felice, “But we are looking forward even more to our first full season since 2019. Last year, the Majors only played 12 games, and the younger teams went down from there. This year, the Majors have 20 regular season games, and the rest all have full schedules again.”
Felice said the turnout for the six-team divisions, ranging from four to 12 years old, was much greater than in previous years.
“We are very bottom-heavy this year, he said. “We have 10 AAA teams, eight Farm A teams, and eight Farm I teams, which means we are going back to the days of having 10-plus Majors teams. And as those kids get into the Majors, we will continue to grow with teams.
Little League teams are broken down by ages:
- Tball, ages 4-6 years
- Farm I, ages 6-8 years
- Farm A, ages 6-9 years
- AA, ages 7-10 years
- AAA, ages 9-12 years
- Majors, ages 10-12 years
Celebrating the return to a normal schedule, four of the Majors teams played right after the ceremony: the Rangers played the Angels and the Giants played the A’s.
Before the ceremony, Cortez, a member of the Major A’s who has been playing baseball for 10 of his 12 years, confidently predicted victory, saying “I think we have a good chance of winning. I know we can do it because we always play hard.” Cortez was right—the A’s beat the Giants in a 10-0 blowout.
The Angels, led by pitcher Terry Duncan, 12, also won 4-2 against the Rangers. Their coach, Edgar Palanco, said his team had come ready to play.
“They have been working very hard,” he said.”We have even been getting together on our days off, practicing and playing games on the weekends. These kids are excited to be out here today for the ceremony, but, for them, they are all about the game. They really want to get out there and play.”
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