Elk Grove Youth Baseball on World Stage—Again

A scrappy group of Little Leaguers from Elk Grove is hoping history repeats itself.

Starting this weekend, the Laguna Purple All Stars will play in the Cal Ripken 10-Year-Old World Series in Winchester, Va.  If the team wins, it would be the second Series championship in four years for the Purple, who also claimed the Cal Ripken title in 2007.

And if recent history is any indication, the Laguna ballplayers will do it the hard way.

The team earned a Series berth two weeks ago after coming from behind at the Pacific Southwest Regional tournament, forcing a deciding game before blowing out host Bakersfield.  Head coach Emmett Smith said that winning the Regional tournament was nervewracking, but he thinks the Purple team’s resilience will serve them well at the Series.

“I was very impressed with the boys,” said Smith, who was a bench coach on the 2007 championship team.  “Like I told them, they did all the hard things and all the tests that were brought to them, and they performed admirably.”

As the Pacific Southwest champion, the Purple will face off against nine other regional teams at the Series.  Each team is guaranteed four games in pool play starting this weekend.  The top six teams will advance to a single elimination bracket that begins on Thursday.

Most of Laguna’s players, who suit up for their first game Sunday against the Midwest, seemed anxious to get on the field.  Zack Meddings, an outfielder and second baseman for the Purple, said he thinks the other teams are going to provide stiff competition.

“They’re all regional champions; they’re all really good,” said Meddings, 10, adding that the Purple can’t “take anybody for credit.  It’s going to be a lot of baseball.”

Spencer Smith, who watched his older brother play on the 2007 team, pointed out other concerns for the players.  The team will be adjusting to different conditions in Virginia, which are a far cry from the dry valley heat of Elk Grove.

“A lot of people say it’s hot and humid there, and it’s not very humid here,” said Smith, also 10 and another second baseman for the Purple. “We’re not really used to the humidity.”

On the other hand, the boys’ parents are also concerned—but not just about the tournament. 

Gay Kelly is taking the trip with her son, Jonathan, who's a pitcher and shortstop for the Purple.  Kelly worries about keeping the players healthy while flying 3,000 miles across the country.

“Part of it is we’re going to experience a time change, so that’s going to be hard in the beginning,” said Kelly, whose older son played in the World Series four years ago.  “So, when everybody else is up, our boys would normally be sleeping, so we’re going to have to make that transition pretty quickly.”

Yet the boys didn't seem worried about bedtimes and time changes as they prepared for the Series.  Even facing the cream of the nation's youth baseball teams didn't faze them, especially after all the team has endured while earning their title shot.

Most of the Laguna players said the Purple squad developed a special chemistry after battling back against Bakersfield to claim the Pacific Southwest title.

Meddings said that team spirit is crucial if the Purple wants to win in Virginia.

“It means you never give up and you run out to your position and you don’t cry at all,” said Meddings.  “I think it will help us because we’ll be a better team.  If you don’t have heart, you’re not a full team.”

The boys will soon learn if they have enough heart for a Series title.  But win or lose, the team’s coach is eyeing a bigger picture.

“No matter how many times you go, it’s always exciting and a great time for the boys,” said Emmett Smith.  “It’s something they’ll never forget.”