Isabelle Chiu
Sports Editor
Mira Costa junior Jake Gordon left his home field in California for the Dominican Republic, where he shared his love for baseball with kids in poverty.
Gordon spent eight days in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, with Team Avenue during winter break from Dec. 24-31. Team Avenue, an international club baseball team, was started by Dodgers player Thomari Storey-Harden and focuses on showcasing baseball around the world through service trips. Gordon traveled with 20 other youth players and spent his time playing baseball against the local kids and helping the area with community service.
“I’d never been to a third-world country before and thought it was interesting to see how they live,” Gordon said. “The accommodations were nothing special, so it was like living as one of the people for the whole week.”
Photos: Junior Jake Gordon traveled to the Dominican Republic for baseball.
Although the trip was mostly focused on baseball, Gordon also participated in community service activities, such as helping paint a hospital. Gordon’s favorite moment of the trip was seeing all the children’s smiles, he said.
“The kids had the same smile that those in the United States get when they get a toy, when it was only toilet paper,” Gordon said. “It was sad but eye-opening.”
Gordon decided to go on the trip because he wanted to travel to a new country where he can speak the native language and share his love for baseball with other kids. Gordon was able to communicate with the locals using their native language, as he is fluent in Spanish.
“At first, going there was a great idea in theory, but I wasn’t sure how the trip would turn out,” Gordon said. “I can’t tell you enough how pleasantly surprised I was. It was a great program.”
The Dominican Republic is an extremely poor country with a history of political instability, and as a result, many people do not want to live there, Gordon said. Baseball has emerged there as a very popular sport in the country because recruitment by American Major League Baseball teams allows local youth to live outside of the island and make money for their families.
“A lot of Dominican players in MLB are kids that came from nothing; some make it and some do not,” Gordon said.
Learn More: The Lure of Baseball in the Dominican Republic
The children that Gordon played with had prior experience with baseball but ranged across all different skill levels. Gordon played multiple local teams as well as academy teams. After playing a game, he spent his free time with the kids.
“Their interpretation of a field is different from ours, as they’ll play on anything,” Gordon said. “It was interesting to see how they have to make do with a lot less than us.”
Gordon helped the younger kids further develop their baseball skills and played competitive games against the older kids. Gordon said the style of baseball is different as it is more relaxed and loose.
“The focus of the trip was primarily baseball, but for me, I think it was more about the people who I got to meet and help,” Gordon said.
Read: Gordon’s potential next trip
Gordon hopes to go on future trips with Team Avenue, including trips to the Dominican Republic or to China in the upcoming year.
“This trip had a lasting impact on me,” Gordon said. “I would love to to go back one day and visit the villages to reconnect with the players that I got to know well on the trip.”
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