POWAY – It's been years since Randy Jones suited up for the Padres or Ed Herrmann played for the Chicago White Sox or Jerry Johnson pitched for the Giants and Padres.
Still, the former pros stay close to the game. Earlier this week, Jones and Herrmann were among several former professional players passing along some of the finer points of baseball to youngsters at the 9th Annual Play with the Pros Baseball Clinic at the Poway SportsPlex.
The clinic, hosted by Cornerstone Christian School in Poway, gave participants a chance to pick the brains of players who made it to the top.
"This clinic is a good fund-raiser for the school and it gets the kids closer to former big league players," said Herrmann, who has volunteered for the event the past six years. "This is the best thing going for us. God gave us the talent to play professional baseball, and the best way to thank people for coming out to support us in our playing days is to give back to young kids and try to get them going down the right road."
Also at the clinic were former players Mark Silverman, Joe Gonzales, Mitch Taylor and Kevin Newby. Herrmann said all of the players live in and around North County and take part in several clinics throughout the year.
The best thing about the half-day clinic, according to organizers, was the individual attention given to participants, who paid $35. It was limited to 45 kids, ages 5 to 17, to keep a player-to-participant ratio of 10 to 1.
"I remember when I was seven years old and I started playing," Jones said. "We never had this when we were coming up. We just played."
Jones, who has lived in the North County for more than 20 years, said the point of the clinic wasn't to teach the entire game of baseball. Instead, he said, it was to offer a few tips the kids can use down the road.
"We can't give them everything in one day or even a four-day camp," he said. "Hopefully, they can pick up one or two little things that they're going to remember for the rest of their lives. The camps also help build confidence. Baseball is a game of confidence and learning the right mechanics."
If at the end of the day those things are accomplished, Jones said the clinic or camp would be worthwhile.
"Just the satisfaction of seeing the kids have fun," Jones said. "I don't need any more than that."
Jones and Herrmann will team up again to host the Randy Jones Baseball Academy in July. For more information call (619) 744-8799 or go to www.randyjonesbb.com
Denise T. Ward can be reached at (619) 718-5304 or at denise.ward@uniontrib.com
