Bring ball back to South Odessa

Kids who want to take their cuts in South Odessa have spent the last few years trying to find a ride to the middle of the city.
   The South Odessa Coaches Association is hoping to fix that problem.
   Trying to drum up support to bring back the South Odessa Little League, SOCA is hosting a preliminary registration at Salinas Park today from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m.
   “Back when I was coaching, even when I was at my house, you could see the lights, you could hear the people cheering,” SOCA member David Luna said. “It’s a staple of the community that needs to be brought back.”
   A few years ago, the South Odessa Little League was merged into Jim Parker to make room for the Woodson Park Aquatic Center. Kids from the south side of the city have been playing at Jim Parker ever since.
   But getting to the middle of the city isn’t easy for a lot of kids on the south side.
   “There are a lot of kids that don’t have the ability to make it to University (Boulevard) to play baseball,” Luna said. “We have a lot of single-parent kids, kids who live with their grandparents, latchkey kids who need to have something constructive to do in the spring and summer.”
   SOCA has high hopes for bringing back the league.
   Two months ago, the coaches started looking for business sponsorships, recruiting kids who want to play and get the word out.
   By the time the Odessa Youth Baseball Association holds its annual meeting in January, SOCA wants to be able to present a convincing case to get its charter back.
   “We have fields over at McKinney Park that aren’t being utilized,” longtime Odessa Little League umpire Jim Darden said. “The more kids we get to play, the better.”
   Minors, majors and any senior league teams would play at McKinney Park. Instructional and tee ball teams would play at Salinas Park.
   The fields in South Odessa are ready.
   Now, SOCA needs plenty of baseball players.