“I’ve looked forward to this all year,” says Senior Eric Ladrech.
“The trip is definitely the highlight of the season,” says Junior Chris Corsiglia.
Twenty-two baseball players, three coaches and 14 parents will leave from Oakland airport at 2:30 a.m., Sunday, April 5. The group will arrive in Hong Kong 13 hours later. They will go on a sightseeing tour and then spend the night at the New World Hotel.
On April 6, the Giants will land in Taipei where they will be met by the principal of I-Ning High School, Chen Chin Chiang, who will escort them to the high school in Tai-Ching.
The Giants will open their first game against an I-Ning all-star team, composed of their best graduates. Many of the players are in their early twenties and were members of the team that visited Redwood four years ago. During the two week stay, they are also scheduled to play the I-Ning High School team and four other prep teams, two of which are in Taipei.
The government of Taiwan will host the Giants, providing them with room and board. The team will stay at motels, youth hostels and with Taiwanese families.
When they are not playing or practicing with the various Taiwan high school teams, the Giants will sightsee, visit national museums and tour parts of Taiwan. They will also shop for gifts and souvenirs in their spare time. On April 17, they will return to San Francisco, after making a stop in Tokyo, Japan.
To pay for the trip, the Giants raised over $11,000 by the sale of raffle tickets, personal donations and a jog-a-thon. No money came from the school or the student body.
According to Varsity Baseball Coach Al Endriss, a donation of Redwood pennants to be given to the I-Ning players was the school’s only contribution.
In addition to the fund raising, each player paid $215 to cover airfare and $85 for a traveling bag, team jacket, slacks, a pair of Adidas running shoes, a shirt that says Redwood on the front and a pair of sweats. The sweats, says Endriss, were made by Levis for the 1980 Olympic Games. They are imprinted with the letters “USA” on the back and are a $150 value. “In all, they’re getting over $300 of personal merchandise for $85,” explains Endriss. “That’s a pretty good deal.”
Baseball, according to Endriss, is the national pastime in Taiwan. “It’s all they play,” he says. “In the past six years, I believe they’ve won six little league titles, six senior league titles, and six big league titles.” Baseball is so popular that even a high school game draws a big crowd. “At a good high school game, there are 30,000-40,000 people, as well as the game being televised,” says Endriss.
In a Taiwan high school, much more time and emphasis are spent on sports than in an American high school. “They practice six hours a day for 365 days a year,” explains Endriss. “They don’t just play for a season; it’s all year round.”
With the return of Endriss as coach, the Giants look strong this season. They have back All-Marin County Athletic League (MCAL) Seniors Tom Arrington and John Laviletta and Junior Chad Kreuter, along with returning lettermen Seniors Stewart Clark, Eric Ladrech, Ryker Schenck and Steve Flach and Juniors Nelson Fujiwara, Chris Corsiglia and Eric Rose. Currently starting in center field is the team’s only sophomore, James Lietz.
According to the Independent-Journal, the Giants are favored to win their tenth consecutive MCAL championship. They have also won three North Coast Section championships and in 1977 were the mythical national champions.
This season, the Giants have nine wins and have lost twice, to Pinole and Campolindo High Schools. Both losses were close decisions and Ladrech felt that Redwood should have won. “We made too many errors,” he said. “They were disappointing losses.”
Corsiglia says that the Giants have a steady defense, strong pitching and balanced hitting. “We are a well disciplined team with a winning tradition,” he says. “Our only weakness might be base running and lack of team speed.”
“This is a very deep team. We have enough good players for two teams,” adds Arrington.
Seniors of the varsity baseball team going to Taiwan include Tom Arrington, Steve Ball, Mark Bernhard, Stewart Clark, Rick Gernetti, Eric Ladrech, John Laviletta, David Lenherr, Mike Loman, Eric Ohama, Ryker Schenck and Steve Flach.
Also making the trip are Juniors Mike Arrington, Chris Corsiglia, Howdy Coyle, Eric Rose and Brian Schrock; and Sophomore James Lietz. The Assistant Coaches going to Taiwan are Dave Martin and Vince Gianni. Martin is a 1977 graduate of Redwood and Gianni was a former Los Angeles Dodger teammate of Endriss.
