He Could Fill Another Position : Homecoming: Former Crenshaw High star Strawberry has opportunity to serve as a role model for city kids.

If he ever needed more notoriety, Darryl Strawberry will always have this: In 1980, he became one of the few high school players to hit a home run at Dodger Stadium.

Somewhat appropriately, it landed in the right-center field seats, just over the 385-foot mark.

Now, the Dodgers are banking on the former Crenshaw High player to hit more of those home runs, this time in a greater, more national sphere. But the real payoff of Strawberry’s return to Los Angeles may still be local.

Strawberry’s worth to the Dodgers could be rivaled by his contribution as a role model to Los Angeles students at an inner-city high school, where dreams of greatness struggle to survive on the fields and playgrounds where Strawberry once played.

Crenshaw may look like any other city school. The buildings are old, the walls white, and most of the students are either Latino or black. Within its walls, there is a history of athletic achievement.

Strawberry, Chris Brown and Ellis Valentine went there. As did football player Wendell Tyler and basketball star Marques Johnson. They were all students at the “Shaw” at one time. And most of them still visit.

Strawberry spent last Friday afternoon at Crenshaw’s football homecoming game. During basketball season, he attends many of the afternoon games. He donates sports equipment to the school, keeps in touch with his coaches and talks to the students. “I don’t forget my roots,” said Strawberry, who grew up near Crenshaw and Slauson.

But now that Strawberry will be playing in Los Angeles, Crenshaw basketball Coach Willie Westbelieves Strawberry’s impact on the students will be far greater.

“Darryl was the No. 1 draft pick in 1980, but this is 1990, and he’s more of just a name to these kids,” West said.

“Because he’s played in New York, we didn’t get too many stories about him, just box scores. Now, he’ll be here. That is sure to be more of an inspiration to the kids.”

Some hope that Strawberry will get involved in a newly organized city baseball project. “The inner city program needs an injection of some type, and, I can’t speak for Darryl, but I don’t think he will let us down,” said Brooks Hurst, Strawberry’s baseball coach at Crenshaw.

“He has kept his ties to the area. Every winter he still works out at Harbor Park with (San Diego Padre) Chris Brown and about five other players.”

In Strawberry’s sophomore year, he was quarterback on the football team. His junior and senior years, he started as a forward on the basketball team, including Crenshaw’s City championship team in 1980.

Strawberry played baseball all three years, mostly in right field, and sometimes as a pitcher. He wanted to play center field, but Hurst said he already had a talented center fielder, Derwin McNealy, who went on to play in the New York Yankee organization.

Cincinnati’s Eric Davis, Strawberry’s best friend, grew up a few blocks away from him and attended Fremont High. They played in summer leagues together dating back to Little League.

“Our best team was a Connie Mack team that won our division and went to Washington for the finals,” Davis said from Cincinnati. “Darryl played center field and I played shortstop. We needed to win a doubleheader for the championship, but lost in the finals to a team from OrangeCounty.”

When it came time for Strawberry to decide the direction of his future, there was no question. He signed a letter of intent to play basketball and baseball at Oklahoma State, but signed with the New York Mets as the No. 1 draft pick.

But the transition to professional baseball was tough. Before joining the Mets’ minor league team at Kingsport, Tenn., Strawberry’s longest trip away had been the week he went to Washington with Davis and his Connie Mack team.

Strawberry struggled early in the minors, and the criticism began quickly. Still, at 18, Strawberry strove to be his own person.

“All I’ve ever thought about is doing well,” he said in an 1980 interview. “I never thought about being anybody else but myself. If I try to have an idol in someone else, if I try to carry myself like Dave Parker or Ted Williams, I’ll never do the job myself.”

But Hurst said Strawberry always had expectations placed on him, even when he was 13 years old. “I remember when his older brother (Michael) was playing for me at Crenshaw, it was still always Darryl, Darryl, Darryl,” Hurst said.

“The expectations on Darryl as a child were tremendous because he was very good. He was always supposed to get the critical hit, always score the run.

“It was a big challenge to him but because of it he never had a chance to learn it was OK to fail. It’s just been the last couple of years he has been able to deal better with the situation and not fear failure.”

Strawberry’s career in New York was characterized by criticism of unfulfilled expectations. Now, he hopes that is over.

“My baseball life is just starting now,” Strawberry said Thursday. “A lot of the fun was taken away by the expectations in New York. I think you’re going to see Darryl Strawberry going at a different level.”

Times staff writer Bob Nightengale contributed to this story.