By Kathy Chouteau
When the San Francisco Giants took on the Los Angeles Dodgers July 11-13, the team got a boost from the Richmond Junior Giants youth players as they launched their annual Junior Giants Stretch Drive over that time period.
During the recent series, the Richmond Junior Giants decorated the locker name plates for the pro players in the Giants’ Oracle Park clubhouse and also had the opportunity to meet and greet the Giants players during batting practice on the field Friday, July 11. The Giants beat the Dodgers that night 8-7.
During Friday’s batting practice, a group of Junior Giants lined up on the side of the baseball field, just in front of the San Francisco Giants dug out. The pros looked good during practice, blasting numerous balls into the stands for home runs. Meanwhile, the youth waited with their signs bearing the names of “big Giants” team players, whose locker name plates they decorated.
One by one, San Francisco Giants including Jung Hoo Lee, Heliot Ramos, Randy Rodriguez, Wilmer Flores, Casey Schmitt, Willy Adames and others visited the Junior Giants on the sidelines to sign banners, baseballs and pose for photos, much to the delight of the kids. Check out the Junior Giants experience here.
Stephanie Vasquez, a Richmond resident who is the coach of the Junior Giants and also works for the Giants Community Fund, said, “It was really amazing for me to be able to give them the opportunity to come out here, enjoy a game, but also have such a special experience with players acknowledging them and all their work coloring the name plates.” She added that it’s great to see that the kids have these opportunities that they don’t get every day.
One Junior Giant from Richmond named Lori said she decorated the name plate of Patrick Bailey with flowers and colored in his number. A teammate, Delilah, went for a motif of purple and pink for her player, Casey Schmitt’s, name plate and said she enjoyed “playing with colors.”
Beyond Richmond, the Junior Giants are made up of 28,000 youth throughout California, Oregon and Nevada. The league’s Stretch Drive looks to “build a future where every kid is a Giant on the field, in the community and in the classroom.” The Stretch Drive draws inspiration from the altruism of Hall of Famer Willie “Stretch” McCovey, by helping thousands of kids step up to the plate, many for the first time.
“All proceeds from the Stretch Drive go to support Junior Giants, and that means everything that it takes to play ball, from equipment to gloves, uniforms and really making sure that we are providing safe places to play,” said Giants Community Fund Senior Coordinator, Communications Chrissy Camilleri, noting this year marks the 17th annual drive.
As the San Francisco Giants celebrate the 25th anniversary of Oracle Park, the team is giving Stretch Drive Mystery Boxes to those who support the Junior Giants Stretch Drive this year. The donor thank-you gifts include Giants memorabilia—like autographed items, game tickets and limited-edition collectibles—as a token of appreciation.
As of this writing, the Junior Giants Stretch Drive has raised $159,857 of a $300,000 overall goal, and although the launch weekend has ended, the effort is still accepting donations. The Stretch Drive and youth leagues are overseen by the Giants Community Fund, a 501(c)(3) that uses baseball and softball to promote health, education and character development to propel youth in underserved regions to be positive forces in their communities, according to its website.
Stretch Drive donation levels span from the Giants Banner Bag, which supports one child for one season for $50, with stepped up donations helping more children. Find out more about each Mystery Box and donate here.
Learn more about Richmond Junior Giants’ baseball, softball and T-ball teams, coordinated locally by the Richmond Police Activities League (RPAL) for children ages 5-14 years old. Questions? Contact Jerry Anderson at janderson@rpal.org.
