Hanoi Capitals Baseball

Today the Hanoi Youth Baseball League All-Star team returned from its summer trip. The team played games in Indonesia, Taiwan and the U.S. Although the team didn't win, it improved every game. Things look good for next year, as the Hanoi team had mostly 10-year old players, but was playing mostly 12-year old teams made up of kids who had played baseball since they were 5 or 6 years old, while our kids have only played for 6 - 24 months.

Pictured above: Vietnam and Korea National U-12 teams in Indonesia.

Some highlights of the trip included:

1. Close loss to Tung Yuen School Team of Taipei, the top baseball school team in Taipei. Hanoi lost only by a score of 12-8, after pulling within 8-6 in the 4th inning after a 2 run home run by SS Nhu Ngoc Quoc Thinh (6th grade, Nguyen Truong To Middle School). The guys could taste victory in that one.

2. Fellowship with old friends from the Klouters, including Hanoi baseball supporter and mentor coach Phil Rognier, coach Jeff Pratt and the other coaches, the Landels, CT, Henry, JoJo, Beau and other players and parents as the team finished its trip at baseball camp in Seattle. An amazing three day camp culminating in a friendship game in Seattle with the Klouters! The players got to stay with U.S. families in Seattle, and make some great friends and experience.

3. Emotional pre-game festivities at the Friendship Game with Garden Grove Pony -- maybe the first time youth teams from the US and Vietnam have met in a long time. The Hanoi Pony players presented a US$ 200 donation to the fund for the 3 and 5-year old Zickefroose boys of Anaheim, two recently orphaned kids in the area (Dad shot their mother, then committed suicide after shooting at the kids, hitting the 3 year old). GGPB contributed $500 and a lifetime PONY membership. Hanoi Pony pulled within 8-4 after 4 innings, but then succumbed to fall 19-5. No one will ever forget the first run scored by Nguyen Phan Anh (9-year old, Hanoi Academy). Maybe a record for press and TV cameras at a youth game. Many local Vietnamese from Little Saigon came out to cheer on the Hanoi team, and even followed on to San Diego to watch the boys. Tim Jacobson and Chris Cooper of GGPB also presented our team with new MLB-quality uniforms and equipment bags. Rick Sanchez, representative of PONY in Orange County presented the boys with official PONY Bronco-11 Medals.

3. RF Nguyen Kha Duy's amazing catch in the 1st inning of the Friendship Game in Garden Grove -- after that, as well as after SS Thinh's solid line shot single in the top of the 1st, told the U.S. crowd knew that Vietnam could play.

4. 10-year old Phan Duc Tri (6th grade, SIS School), catching 3 fly balls in the outfield in the friendship game vs. Garden Grove Pony Baseball, including one that probably robbed the Garden Grove cleanup hitter of a sure HR.

5. 11-year old pitcher Nguyen Tuan Anh hitting 63 MPH on the gun in the Pony championships, and improving into a solid pitcher with every game.

6. 10-year old Ngo Hoang Hieu (5th grade, Doan Thi Diem) laying down a perfect bunt single vs. the Japan National U-12 Team.

7. 9-year old Nguyen Phan Anh scoring Vietnam baseball's first ever run in the U.S, in the 4th inning vs. Garden Grove Pony.

8. 10-year old Tran Trung Hieu (5th grade, Doan Thi Diem School)'s web gem spear of a line drive at 3B in the USTSA World Series in San Diego.

9. 11-year old Ben Nguyen Treutler (6th grade, Doan Thi Diem) going 5-6 at the plate in the first 3 games of the USTSA World Series. Tran Trung Hieu and Pham Quoc Minh's back to back long bombs vs the Japan National Team (225+ feet!), but both caught be an amazing rightfielder who back-tracked about 50 feet to make the catches(was that the next Ichiro????)

10. Ngo Hoang Hieu's great fly ball catch off the Asia-Pacific champion Taiwan team shown on national TV in Taiwan. Vietnam's team played in front of 2,000 fans at Taiwan Youth Stadium, including many Vietnamese people living in Taiwan who came to cheer on the team from their homeland. Who will ever forget the scene of 20 Vietnamese caretakers (nurses) pushing their elderly U80 Taiwanese charges out to the field to watch a Vietnam - Taiwan baseball game!!! Or, the old Vietnamese lady living in Taipei for 10 years that bought ice cream for the team.

11. Hanoi players meeting baseball legends Troy Percival (all-star Angels closer) and Brett Boone (all-star Mariners 2B) in San Diego, and posing for pictures.

12. Leading three games in the USTSA World Series before falling behind (we started every game off with a lead in the first, but could not hold on!). We didn't finish last in this tournament (29th out of 30 teams), and even ended up ranked 60th in the USTSA national rankings for the US, because we went in this tournament against the toughest teams in California. That's ok for our first try.

13. C Pham Quoc Minh (7th grade, Giang Vo Middle School), representing Vietnam in the home run derby in Indonesia, coming within a few feet of hitting a long home run over the fence.

14. SS Nhu Ngoc Quoc Thinh and 2B Do Quang Hieu (5th grade, Doan Thi Diem) combining for two double plays vs Singapore National U-12 team.

15. Pinch Runner Pham Phu An (Alfred E. Nobel Middle School) streaking home for the first run vs. Indonesia National Team.

16. Nguyen Duc Huy's (5th grade, Nam Thanh Cong)unassisted double play at 1st base vs. Taiwan champion national team, and consistent play at 1st throughout the tournament. Duc Huy only pitched once, but had a perfect outing against Hong Kong in Indonesia, getting out all the batters he faced.

17. A 7-1 loss to the Hong Kong National U-12 Pony Team in Taiwan, in which it was a tight game into the late innings. Ben Nguyen Treutler (6th grade, Doan Thi Diem Middle School) pitched a complete game using only 59 pitches over 7 innings, only giving up only two earned runs (the rest came off errors).

18. Nguyen Dac Quang Vinh's (6th grade, Hanoi Academy) back-peddaling circus catch of a fly ball vs New Zealand National team in Indonesia.

19. C Lam Nguyen Khai Hoan's (6th grade, Doan Thi Diem) triple vs Hong Kong National Pony team, and excellent catching throughout the tournament.

20. New teammate, 10-year old pitching phenom Boomer Hoang Tieu of Irvine, California from the O.C. Nitro Travel Team joining his homeland's team the Hanoi Capitals to share his great pitching skills during the San Diego tournament. The boys got a new teammate and friend in Boomer.

21. Vietnam team performing "Trong Com" at the culture night in Indonesia for all the other teams to see and hear.

22. 10-year old left-handed fireballer Nguyen Tong Hai (5th grade, SIS School) throwing 2 2/3 scoreless innings vs. New Zealand 12-year old national team. He also had an excellent bunt single vs. Philippines, and pitched well in San Diego, despite being one of the youngest players in the tournament.

23. Great fun at the Mariners game to cheer on our idol, Ichiro!

24. Lots of hot dogs, hamburgers, and some instant noodles along the way.

25. Last but not least, Coach Loc, Boomer, Hamy and Stinky -- the Vietnamese baseball family from Orange County who adopted our team and helped so much. Coach Loc, an experienced coach in Orange County, gave the team and coaches a lot of useful tips and helped coach from the dugout during the games in San Diego. Coach Loc appeared out of nowhere at the Friendship Game in Garden Grove with trophies for every one of our players, and two huge duffel bags of uniforms for the team.

26. An incredible baseball clinic by super coach Pat Davis (coach of 1999 Pony Mustang World Series Champs)of Garden Grove, and his outstanding baseball player son James Davis of Santa Ana College.

27. Fun and learning at the U-14 championships in Santee California, where the kids learned a lot from the So Cal National Travel Team, including their coaches and U-14 phenom Tyler Alamo.

28. Taking the city bus to batting practice at Home Run Park batting cages in Anaheim, then having to walk back three miles to the hotel with our gear, as bus service stopped. Going to the top of the 101 story building in Taipei and a day off at Disneyland.

29. One 12-year old boy born in Hanoi, but now living in New York, flew all the way to San Diego to cheer on the team, and brought the team a bunch of gear he collected from his youth team for the boys to bring back to Vietnam -- thanks Jack and Tim!

30. The smile on everyone we met's faces when they got a Vietnam baseball pin -- we gave away 1,000 smiles on this trip, and we still didn't have enough for everyone.

Thanks to all the coaches, parents, grandparents, and friends who made the trip possible, especially the team moms (Giang, Lan, Thuy . . . ), and coach Thuy, coaches Phu and Chien, sponsor SSI Corporation, sponsor Song Da Corporation, coaches Phil and Jeff, Carolyn and Hans, all Klouter host parents, Ben's grandparents, Me Hoa, Hank and chi Ut, Coach Loc and Hamy, Rick and Joe at USTSA. Tim and Jack. Chu Tien and chi Dung. Rick Sanchez from Pony in OC. Tim Jacobson, Chris Cooper, and all the coaches at Garden Grove Pony. Pat Davis and his son James. Michelle (student host in Taiwan), Vita and Be (student hosts in Indonesia). Anderson, Soto, and The Show, and Microsoft and the Mariners for the generosity. Ryan and Tony from the newspapers.