Willem Kemp came out of retirement for one last international tournament, taking leave from his job as co-owner of a lighting company back home in Cape Town.
He made the trek halfway around the world to Arizona for the World Baseball Classic, only to hang up his catcher’s mitt on Friday following a final game that ended with a 17-0 beating from the United States — and in front of a crowd of mostly Americans.
Kemp celebrated the moment anyway. South Africa made major strides just by competing in the inaugural World Baseball Classic, despite getting outscored 38-12 in three games.
Baseball officials in his country called upon the 33-year-old Kemp, the team’s oldest member, to lead this inexperienced squad half made up of teenagers.
”It’s definitely a big positive,” said Kemp, sporting an 8cm scrape near his right elbow from a slide sustained trying to catch a pop-up by Derrek Lee. ”Normally at these tournaments the results are not good and back home they’re saying, ‘You’re wasting your time.’ In previous trips, they were always ducking the South Africans.”
Then, after a close game with Canada — South Africa lost 11-8 after leading going into the ninth inning — the support began flooding in. E-mails, phone calls at all hours, people planning barbecues around watching games, and groups going in on rentals of big-screen televisions to cheer on the team.
Friday’s game lasted only one hour and 47 minutes, ending after five innings thanks to the mercy rule. The US team announced their probable starter for Saturday’s second-round date with Japan — Jake Peavy — during the fourth inning.
Not that anybody expected much from South Africa. Even their players knew they’d probably get clobbered by Roger Clemens and his Major League Baseball All-Star supporting cast.
How did South Africa even get an invite? Organisers wanted to make the World Baseball Classic a true world event by including squads from several continents.
In South Africa, baseball was introduced in 1898 by American gold miners who would play in their free time in Johannesburg. Kemp is hoping his team’s participation here will only help generate more interest among kids.
South Africa had 17 at-bats on Friday — to 17 runs for the US in the shut-out at Scottsdale Stadium.
”It was just a thrill and a privilege to be here,” said South Africa manager Rick Magnante, a long-time amateur scout in the Oakland Athletics’ Organisation. ”I don’t know that I can put it into words exactly, but it’s a lifetime experience, something these boys will treasure forever — although we didn’t win and the scoreboard tells the true story.”
Now, South Africa can head home with heads held high.
The South African team were made up of mostly third-level US minor-league players and teenagers happy just to visit the US and face big-league talent. The players turned in unison and some took pictures when San Francisco slugger Barry Bonds, again facing constant scrutiny about his alleged steroids use, ran through the dugout in street clothes and on to the field to hug Derek Jeter before the game.
”Everyone looked and said, ‘Did you see that?”’ said Kemp, who originally retired two years ago before making a return. ”It’s cool for the kids. And for me it was an honour meeting Barry Bonds. I told him it was a welcome sight seeing him for a change. I feel sorry for him at the moment.”
Commissioner Bud Selig could see beyond the lopsided score to the benefits for the overmatched South Africans.
”That’s exactly the point,” Selig said while attending the game. ”The measuring stick is not only what happens in this country; the measuring stick is what happens all over the world.” — Sapa-AP