The La Victoria Athletics

Today, I visited my final baseball academy on this trip; the Oakland Athletics, located in La Victoria, about an hour outside of Santo Domingo. The academy is only about a five minute talk from the middle of town, and one could be forgiven for thinking that the actual A's were based in La Victoria, rather than in Oakland.

After arriving at the academy, I was struck by the significant crowd that had gathered to watch the A's take on the Phillies. At least one hundred people, ranging from interested local players to small toddlers to old men, had gathered in the stands, busily chatting while the teams got ready to play. The crowd was the largest I had seen at a Dominican Summer League game, even besting the San Diego Padres' significant base. When the game got started, the crowd cheered with every A's successful play, and booed the umpire after a questionable call. It was a different environment from most academies I've visited.

Indeed, Raymond Abreu, who has run the Dominican operations for the A's for the past 14 years, told me that the crowd size has become a norm. When the team is in playoff contention (this year they're a little far back), he told me that hundreds of people pack the stands, even bringing noisemakers to voice their support. Raymond told me that the A's have had an academy in La Victoria since 1997, and have made significant efforts to become part of the community, rather than simply an extravagant complex unreachable for the masses.

To this extent, the A's have engaged in several community programs throughout the past decade. They have worked significantly through a local church, establishing a relationship, and providing clothes and uniforms whenever they are needed. They helped a local school by providing desks, and in one of their most extensive projects, gave away over 2,000 wheelchairs to handicapped people in La Victoria. In a country with a shoddy health care system, this was an especially useful, and innovative, idea, and they surveyed the community beforehand to ensure that they chairs would be used properly. They continue to work through the church, rather than simply giving away equipment and clothes on an informal basis.

Abreu's passion, however, is helping out kids in the community. Every day, after the A's team plays their game, kids from the community can come to the complex and play themselves. The A's even built a little league field on their premises for this explicit purpose. In order to play, however, the kids must register, providing proof that they attend school. Abreu said this system has worked well, and ensured that all the kids are simultaneously pursuing an education while playing baseball. The program is supervised by older kids from the community, as the players range from 5-12 years old. At the same time, however, the A's support the older youth leagues as well. While I was there, a youth team from the community played a game at the same time as the A's. Abreu has made sure that the A's facility can be used by everyone in the community.

The efforts seem to have paid off. When I took a walk in La Victoria, I saw people wearing A's parephernilia, ranging from shirts to hats to even umbrellas. Most people I talked to were appreciative of their efforts (especially mothers, who were thankful their kids could play on the fields), and all had attended a game at some point. I must add that a few kids I talked to at the A's complex complained that they had not received any equipment from the A's. Abreu said this is a problem; they have given away some uniforms and gloves, but then every kid in the entire community wants some. So they have to walk a fine line, and obviously, upset some people in the process. It is difficult for the team to please everyone.

It was also interesting to talk to Abreu about the A's general philosophy in Latin America. The A's are well known in the US for being an excetional small market team; they don't have a high pay-roll, but consistently get good results. This comes from an effective farm system, ranging from the DR to the minors. Indeed, they have produced many players from their academy, including Miguel Tejada (a former MVP) and Angel Berroa (a former Rookie of the Year). With the big league team struggling, Abreu told me that they have made a decision to get more competitive in Latin America. This became evident when they offered a record $4.2 million to 16 year old pitcher Michel Inoa (who was at the academy). They try to run a cost-efficient operation in their Dominican facility; the academy is modest, but they host two teams (a total of 70 players) and provide all the basic comforts. Abreu told me they don't need the extravagance of the Mets and Padres facilities in order to be effective in producing players.

It was clear that the A's have made a real investment in the Dominican Republic, and not just to produce big-league players. They recognize the importance of helping out in the community (Abreu spoke in rather religious terms about the need to take care of people that are less fortunate), and now have an extremely positive image in La Victoria, and throughout the country. Indeed, one could argue that the A's should be an example for all teams in the country, in their approach to making their operations in the DR a priority, both from a player development and community development standpoint (one could also probably argue that the Padres took heed of this example, especially because their current Vice President, Sandy Alderson, used to have a prominent position with the A's). It was a good last academy to visit.