Polishing pupils on diamond

Bryce Alderton

The game of baseball has taken Charlie Phillips many places, but

these days, the former Southern California College (now Vanguard

University) coach and minor leaguer in the Angels and Dodgers

organizations, remains quite close.

Phillips, 48, who reached triple-A as a pitcher in the Angels

organization before guiding Southern California College during the

Ila Borders years in the early 1990s -- she made international

headlines at SCC, then went on to pitch in the independent Northern

League -- devotes much of his free time to coaching and instructing

the youth in Newport Beach and Corona del Mar about a game dear to

his heart.

He has coached Corona del Mar 13-year-olds in Pony baseball the

last two seasons. He was an assistant for this year’s Cardinals, who

reached the Newport-Mesa Pony title game. Phillips then guided the

CdM Pony All-Stars to a 2-2 mark in the district tournament. The

previous six years, he guided teams in Newport Harbor Baseball

Association.

“I have coached every level from double-A on up,” said Phillips,

who has coached teams on the community college, college and high

school levels for 16 years while providing private instruction for 18

years. He taught Corona del Mar High standout Josh Bradbury six years

ago when Bradbury was in Newport Beach Little League’s Majors

Division.

Playing and coaching baseball are two things Phillips knows much

about.

More than 50 players he has coached privately have signed

contracts with professional teams.

He grew up in Garden Grove and attended La Quinta High, where he

earned All-CIF honors for two seasons before being drafted by the

Atlanta Braves.

Phillips earned a scholarship to USC and was a freshman on the

1974 national championship squad for legendary coach Rod Dedeaux.

One of Phillips’ more memorable experiences was throwing in relief

for the U.S. team that defeated Japan in a seven-game series in 1975,

nearly a decade before baseball was contested in the Olympics. He

then spent two years in the Dodgers organization before becoming a

teacher in the Santa Ana Unified School District for 21 years.

He currently teaches social studies at Cesar Chavez Continuation

School in Santa Ana.

Phillips led Southern California College for six seasons -- his

final one in 1995 -- and last coached at Biola University in La

Mirada as an assistant in 1996.

“I miss college coaching. Being on the field is what I really

like,” said Phillips, who remarried and lives in Huntington Beach.

“But when your name is out of the limelight after eight, nine, 10

years ... my name gets mentioned every once in awhile.”

Even if a position opened up at a college, though, Phillips

questioned whether he would pursue the job.

“With work right now and still raising three teenagers, it is a

benefit to stay around the house,” Phillips said.

The opportunity, however, nearly presented itself for Phillips to

guide a dozen 14-year-olds in an event they would all remember

forever.

But they will have to wait.

Phillips was set to guide 14-year-olds representing the United

States in an international tournament in Havana, Cuba, Aug. 1-7. In

mid-July, however, he received a call from friend Bob Weinstein,

chief executive of a business that provides opportunities for young

athletes from various sports in the U.S. to compete in Cuba.

Weinstein informed Phillips the team couldn’t participate due to

political unrest.

“We were supposed to start practicing July 19, and were supposed

to get our uniforms later that week,” Phillips said. “What can you

do? It was out of our hands.”

The team included six players from Corona del Mar and Newport

Beach and a player from Utah.

Phillips can most often be found on a diamond. His focus is

pitching, but he teaches all aspects of the game.

He also tosses plenty of balls during batting practice.

“I’ll throw 5,000 pitches a week [during batting practice] and,

after that, I’ll throw to the pitchers,” Phillips said. “My arm is in

good shape, but you can feel the difference on the other days.”

A majority of Phillips’ students are high school players who learn

a variety of pitches, including two- and four-seam fastballs, a

two-seam curveball and changeup. Phillips works closely in the

Newport-Mesa area alongside professional scouts Bobby DeJardin

(Angels), Ron Vaughn (Athletics) and Ray Krawczyk (Angels).

“They learn to throw four pitches for strikes,” Phillips said of

his students. “My job is to help them get college scholarships.”

Bradbury, named to the All-California team by Cal Hi Sports after

helping lead CdM to the CIF Southern Section Division IV title this

spring, worked with Phillips for most of the season when he was in

Little League and again for a few lessons in 2003 as a junior.

Shoulder tendinitis, though, limited Bradbury to designated hitter

this spring, but he still slammed 11 home runs, the second best

single-season total in school history.

“[Phillips] is very knowledgeable and was helpful,” Bradbury said.

“He would try to distract you while throwing, but you would have to

get through it.”

Like leaping to the next step.