Old Friendship Is Paying Dividends

Steven Sapp remembers those evenings as a young boy when he would tag along with his dad to watch Eric Davis wow the Dodger Stadium crowd with his blistering speed and powerful bat.

OK, so Davis played for the Cincinnati Reds at the time and never accomplished much in his two seasons with the Dodgers, but Sapp didn’t mind. He idolized the outfielder, whom his dad had known since their Little League days together, becoming wide-eyed every time he shook hands with the major leaguer who invited them to games.

More than a decade later, it is Davis who has come to watch Sapp, 16, roam the outfield in the Area Code Baseball Games, a weeklong tournament in Long Beach that features 250 of the top high school baseball players from the United States and abroad. It concludes Saturday.

Davis isn’t making the trek from his home in Calabasas to Blair Field as a favor to Sapp’s father, Leonard. Davis comes to track the progress of his protege after having spent much of the last year training him one-on-one at baseball diamonds in Manhattan Beach and Los Angeles.

“Steven has a lot of ability,” said Davis, in his first year of retirement after a 17-year major league career in which he batted .269 with 282 home runs. “He has the right makeup and attitude. He has an opportunity to be something special.”

All it took for Davis to volunteer his time was a phone call from Leonard Sapp.

“It was my idea for him to work out with Eric,” the elder Sapp said. “Who would be better to teach him than an actual pro?”

After shaking off some initial jitters, the younger Sapp quickly displayed his capabilities.

Davis has taught Sapp everything from the mechanics of batting to getting a good jump on a ball hit to the outfield during their one or two sessions a week.

“What I’ve tried to stress to Steven is that nine times out of 10, it’s not about athletic ability,” Davis said. “It’s about your mental makeup. Everyone can play. What makes you a great player and stand out is attitude.

“When you’re facing Randy Johnson, you can’t be intimidated. You have to be strong mentally and believe in yourself. Not hoping I can, but knowing I can.”

The 6-foot-3, 190-pound Sapp plans to play for West Torrance High after spending his first three years at Redondo. His training with Davis could pay immediate dividends, West Torrance Coach Harry Jenkins said.

“Most kids pay for private lessons and they don’t have access to major league baseball players,” Jenkins said.

Davis said his biggest responsibility is to make sure Sapp has his priorities in order.

That became evident last spring, when Sapp’s grades slipped and he was forced to sit out a large part of the baseball season. Davis stayed on Sapp until he achieved a 3.5 grade-point average for his final term of the year.

“The academic side is the most important thing. He understands that,” Davis said.

“The most important advice I have given him is to make sure you give yourself an opportunity to go to college and to never let anyone tell you what you can or can’t do.”