Talk about baseball to the kids in the Goducate Children’s Home (and probably elsewhere) in Cambodia and they will simply be disinterested. But show them the gear, teach them the baseball rules, explain the mechanics, let them have their first taste of the game at the diamond field, and they will so awe-struck and excited that they will keep badgering you with their new mantra: “Let’s play ball!”
Two months ago, the US Navy Seventh Fleet gave the Goducate Children’s Home with an assortment of supplies and sports equipment, including some baseball gear. 2 years ago, during the second phase of Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (CARAT) in Cambodia, some members of the US Navy, among them, musicians of the Seventh Fleet Orient Band Express, visited the Goducate Children’s Home. They played music with the children and involved them in basketball and soccer games as part of their community service project.
In Cambodia, however, the national game is soccer, and the youth have not been exposed to baseball. To broaden their knowledge of sports, during my recent visit to the Home, I had a baseball session with the boys. 22 boys, aged 5-17, sgathered at the improvised diamond field for baseball lessons and impromptu practice. Two teams were then constituted at 11 players per team, with 9 in the field—pitcher catcher, 4 infielders, 3 outfielders—and two backup infielders. It was confusing and funny at first but the first tryout and succeeding innings at the diamond field were very instructive and exhilarating for everyone.