Tiny Astros: Little League Superstars

It was almost time for me to go to the ballpark. I had my uniform on, my stirrups pulled up, my baseball mitt, and I was just about to hairspray my bangs that I had so stylishly combed underneath my cap. For when you played baseball for the 1991 Little League Houston Astros of Dublin, California, your style and overall appearance on the baseball diamond was just as important as the game itself.

The Astros played Little League Baseball at an interesting age and time. We were all thirteen years old, and easily influenced by our surroundings. Gangster Rap was just making it big. I believe Dr. Dre’s album, The Chronic was at the top of the charts. Sports Center was a relatively new show. It allowed us to see more sports highlights and witness how "The Pros" played the game. Influence was thrown at us from many different directions, and at that age, we were like little sponges soaking up everything that we could.

Take our right fielder, Daemon Hallan, for example. He showed up to our first five games with his baseball jersey on backwards (Criss-Cross was huge at the time). When told to put his jersey on the right way, he did, but by the third inning his jersey was on “Criss-Cross style” yet again. Daemon was also the guy who sagged his baseball pants to just above his knees every game (our entire team eventually caught on to this style). He was a player with a lot of confidence too. In fact, every time he stepped to the plate, he would point to the fence in a taunting fashion, similar to the way that Babe Ruth used to point. (Daemon only had two hits the entire year).

Our third baseman, Antone Zimora, liked to let out all of his aggression during games. While at bat against Kirk Yokomizo (an 82lb pitcher), he was accidentally hit by a pitch (clocked at 41mph). Without hesitation, Antone stormed the mound for a “beat down” of the fragile pitcher. He swung and missed once, when all of the coaches, along with Kirk’s parents, came to break it up.(***Keep in mind, Little League Pitchers suck and hit people on accident all of the time***).

After Antone’s one game suspension, he got in an argument with an opposing player on the field during a later game, and elected to jump out of the dugout with an aluminum bat to give chase. Fortunately, that was the last game Antone Zimora would play in an Astros uniform.

The Astros had some inner turmoil within the organization as well. Keith McClintock, our poor first baseman with Turret’s Syndrome was constantly picked on by his teammates. Keith’s case of Turret’s was not typical. He didn’t cuss and yell like most people with Turret’s Syndrome do. Instead, Keith would spit and jump (a reaction that happened simultaneously). He did this roughly three times a minute – during mid sentence or while in silence. Having Turret’s Syndrome amongst a team of thirteen-year-old kids was one of the most brutal things that I have ever had to witness (you had to feel bad for the guy). During one of our games, Keith caught the ball and attempted to throw it back to the pitcher. He had one of his “outbursts” however, and the ball ended up behind him while he ended up on the ground. The runner’s advanced, and the other team won.

Another interesting thing about Keith is that he wore a “lucky undershirt” for every game. It was a shirt that had a picture of DJ Quick and said, “Born & Raised in Compton”. Even though Keith was born and raised in Dublin CA, the shirt, in a way, gave him a bit of street credit amongst the rest of the team that he needed to get by.

Another member of our all-star lineup was a kid by the name of Justin Hayduck. He was the kid that everybody hated. He would pick on Keith McClintock the most; he popped off his mouth to everybody and anybody, and just generally got into the most trouble (he was a real dick head). In one game, Justin was disputably called out on his slide into second base. While graciously walking back to the dugout, he chose to make a quick U-turn, grab a handful of dirt and throw it into the umpire’s face. It was truly a disgrace. As he was being carried off of the field, kicking and screaming, the rest of the team was informed that we would have to forfeit the game do to a lack of players (we only had 8).

The young individuals who made up the ’91 Houston Astros of Dublin, California were quite a spectacle. They were a team that took a dyslexic view at the “team before individual."

The Astros brought a unique brand of attitude that affected everybody that was involved with the team. We may not have won a single game that year, but it was a season that we will all remember for the rest of our lives.

Note:The ’91 Houston Astros of Dublin, California was the first of two winless teams that I was apart of.