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May 28, 2004 - Subscribe - Contact Us - Rate Card - Place an Ad Valley&State Backpage O&E Sports Archives Classifieds Faith&Beliefs Obituaries Revels March 22, 2004 Practicing with professionals By Jennifer Squires Ashland Daily Tidings It's one small step for prep baseball players like Ashland High catcher Robby Bruce and South Medford first basemen Allen Smith, but one giant leap for baseball in the Rogue Valley. The second annual Southern Oregon Pro-Camp pulled together over 100 youth baseball players for three days of training with former major leaguers at North Mountain Park. Former oakland a's pitcher Dave Stewart (right) gives an individual lesson to Ashland's Julian Kurlan, 14, during the Southern Oregon Pro-Camp, Saturday at North Mountain Park. The three-day camp will wrap up today. Satsuki Doi | Ashland Daily Tidings "There's just a lot of guys who know what they're doing," said Bruce, a sophomore on the Grizzly baseball team. "They know what they're talking about and if you listen, you'll definitely get better." Bruce, who went through the inaugural Pro-Camp last spring break, feels like the instruction young ball players get from training camps such as the Southern Oregon program has a dramatic impact on players' performances. "It's definitely helped me immensely," Bruce said. "My batting average has really improved." However, it's not just the skills of the almost-200 players who've graduated from Pro-Camp in the past two years that have improved. Players and parents alike believe the level play in the Southern Oregon Conference has stepped up as a result of the camp's existence. Over the weekend, players from every SOC team except for North Medford attended the camp. Camp organizer and vice president of Mt. Ashland Babe Ruth Baseball Alan Decker explained that the three days of intense training at the beginning of the season, along with the commitment and excitement attending the camp generates, reflects later in the way players perform in conference games. "Kids work harder when they love something," Alan Decker said. Decker's wife, Tami, who has been integral to the camp's success agreed. "It has changed them," Tami Decker said. "A couple of kids' moms said 'He's playing so much better. He just has a love of the game. I don't know where it came from.' I know. These guys (the camp coaches) bring it out in them." The idea The Deckers, whose son Aaron plays for the Grizzlies, had been traveling to Dusty Baker School of Baseball in Sacramento, Calif. for a few years when it dawned on them: Southern Oregon needs a quality baseball camp. "We've been sending our kids down to the Dusty Baker camp for years," Alan Decker said. "We've noticed what these guys have done for our kids down there." Using former Major Leaguers to coach youth ball players, the Sacramento camp attracts players from all over the West to its winter program. While a handful of Rogue Valley players make the trip, the Deckers believed more kids would participate if the camp were closer to home. So they brought it to Ashland. "I just asked them (the ex-pros) 'Do you travel? We've got a whole valley of kids up here,'" Tami Decker said. "We needed this caliber up here. We've taken all of these kids to another level." Former professional players Bruce Carmichael of the Chicago Cubs, Bob Oliver of the Kansas City Royals, Clint Brill of the Atlanta Braves, Rich Murray of the San Francisco Giants, Rowland Office of the Atlanta Braves and possible future Hall of Famer Dave Stewart of the Oakland A's made the trip north to comprise the main coaching staff of the program. "It's basically the same thing in a different place," said Bruce, who has also participated in the Dusty Baker camp. "It's just an easier location where guys in southern Oregon can practice and get better." With just a couple of deviations, the Ashland camp really is the traveling road-show version of the Dusty Baker program and the athletes notice the quality of instruction they receive. "Being ex-major leaguers like these guys are, its brings a level of professionalism," said Smith, a senior from South Medford who has trained at the Southern Oregon camp for two years. "I think I learned a couple of new things from this camp." The way it works More than 100 players from all over Oregon - Jackson and Josephine counties, the coast, eastern Oregon, the Eugene/Springfield area and Portland - converged on the varsity field at North Mountain Park to train Friday, Saturday and Sunday, meaning camp attendance jumped almost 50 percent in just one year. "This camp is just starting to take off, but I can see this one taking off," said Office, a former pro who has coached at the Ashland camp both years and for more than a decade and a half at the Dusty Baker camp. "It takes time to get a camp like the one in Sacramento, but I can see this one getting that way." Interest in the Pro-Camp has spread largely through word-of-mouth, as players told their teammates about the three-day intensive program and the chance to work with professionals. "The instruction from major-leaguers was appealing," Smith said. "It's a fun opportunity to play more baseball." And it works. When we come here, we drill it in," Bruce said. "All the coaches are nice guys. They teach by demonstration - not just 'Do what I say,' but "'Do what I do.'" The ex-pros love the opportunity to help younger players enhance their skills and love of the game. "I just like being around kids and teaching baseball," Dave Stewart said. "I instruct on a more personal level and I understand what it takes to be successful at a major level." Where it's going Eventually, the Deckers would like to see the camp fill to capacity - 200 youth baseball players - while both athletes and coaches have a good time practicing the game they love. "I get the satisfaction of seeing little kids with smiles on their faces," Office said. "All the guys who come up here get a kick out of it." It's true. "It's been nice," Stewart said. "The kids are outstanding." Although bringing players in from all over the region is exciting, the intentions of the Pro-Camp have always been to enhance the level of play in the Rogue Valley so area teams can compete better at a state-wide level and beyond. "I know they all want to get better," Tami Decker said. "They just want to keep taking [their playing abilities] up. Plus they want to meet the pros." The athletes really believe three days of grueling practice in the hot spring sun pays off, which is why they come back and bring their teammates. "It can only increase the level of play," Smith said. "It also reflects the commitment of the kids who come and their willingness to work hard. It makes them better because of that." DailyTidings.com Home Page Valley&State | Backpage | O&E | Sports | Archives | Weather | Classifieds Columnists | Faith&Beliefs | Obituaries | Revels | Subscribe | Contact Us Copyright 2004 Ashland Daily Tidings and Ottaway Newspapers All Rights Reserved Site Search: .:Advertisements:. RESOURCES - Mail Tribune News - ODOT Road Cams