St. Mary's High School Baseball

First-Class Team, First-Class Field

Other teams want to schedule St. Mary’s just to see the field. And there’s good reason, thanks to the parents and alumni who make St. Mary what it is.

To the untrained eye, the dirt placed carefully around the varsity baseball diamond at the Thompson Sports Complex appears to have come from the same dirt lot every other high school secures for their fields.

However, those in the know are certainly aware that the clay and cinder mix inside the ballpark is none other than the same nutrient-filled dirt found at the home for the San Francisco Giants. Paying that kind of meticulous detail toward a high school baseball field would be seemingly absurd at any other facility, but not to St. Mary’s coach Peter Pijl and his wide network of supporters of Rams baseball.

“Twice a year (the Giants) take the dirt out and our guys pick it up for us,” Pijl says, referring to a ballplayer’s parent associated with Delta Bluegrass. The landscaping company has been supplying AT&T Park with the mix ever since the stadium opened.

So when St. Mary’s players dream of a major-league home run, they only have to look down at their feet to see the real dirt to trot around.

Visiting fans and newcomers to the Rams’ gem of a baseball field almost certainly won’t even notice the quality of “dirt” at the Thompson Complex during their visit. Instead, they may turn their eyes toward the outfield scoreboard designed and constructed by Pijl and more friends of the St. Mary’s baseball network.

While watching a North-South All-Star game at U.C.-Irvine, Pijl noticed the intricate steel structure surrounding the stadium scoreboard. With the help of St. Mary’s graduate Frank Lozano, an engineer, Pijl immediately drew up plans of the structure and sent them off of Mike Pyle, a friend who owns a Modesto-based steel manufacturing company. Former Rams player Kevin Collins assembled the product, complete with a manual scoreboard with letters and numbers identical to those used at Boston’s Fenway Park.

“People don’t realize how massive it all is until they go out there,” Pijl said. “It’s an absolutely beautiful view from out there.”

There have been a plethora of volunteers like Collins, Pyle and Lozano to cross through the entryway of the Thompson Sports Complex offering a helping hand. Countless hours have been donated by parents and supporters to ensure St. Mary’s players play in the best facility possible.

Jack Jenkins, a 10-year Stockton resident and father of Milwaukee Brewers player Geoff Jenkins, said he’s never seen anything quite like it.

“It’s top-drawer,” Jenkins said. “Many colleges and minor league teams don’t have the kind of quality St. Mary’s does. It says there’s a commitment by the school, coaches and alumni to have the best possible program for the kids to excel. I see a real backing of people.”

At his home, Pijl has four books depicting all kinds of details about major-league ballparks. Looking closely, one can see the all-brick backstop similar to Wrigley Field or the famous Ivy in Chicago growing in right field.

“I can’t tell you how much I trim that every year,” Pijl said. “But I love it.”

The 450-seat facility has stadium chairs and no one has to look through a chain-linked fence to see a classic play at the plate. Instead, St. Mary’s fans look through a 25-by-120 foot backstop of black netting.

At least one of Pijl’s closest friends has suggested he should, perhaps, settle for a regular high school field.

“My best friend said, ‘Why change it? There’s nothing wrong with it.’ I laughed and said that it could be so much nicer. Baseball is my passion.

“The nicer facility you have,” explains Pijl, “the more (the players) take it seriously. I can’t tell you how many coaches come here and say they can’t believe how nice it is.”

Pijl is in his 23rd season with the Rams, his seventh as the head coach. His network of supporters includes everyone from the Team Mom to the Sprague Family, which generously provided the initial funds for Pijl’s wish list of projects.

“The Sports Complex Fieldhouse doesn’t happen without that seed money,” Pijl said. “Without it, the project never gets started.”