Few things touch San Diego families as deeply as Little League baseball. Layer in travel ball and the pool of passionate dads, moms, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles and grandparents widens. Right now across our region, little league seasons are kicking off with opening day ceremonies that include enough soft pretzels, clean jerseys, and freshly cut grass to make just about any kid feel like anything is possible. It’s against that backdrop that we give you our latest episode of Dear San Diego – this one focused on little league and travel baseball with three guests who are as committed as anyone to youth baseball: Jeff Rosa, Joe Lewis  and Chad Starkey.‍‍

Meet Our Guests

Jeff Rosa - A former college pitcher, Jeff is President of the Board at San Carlos Little League (SCLL), one of the most popular and successful programs in the region. SCLL feeds two local travel ball organizations, Cowboys Baseball and King Kong, as well as the local high school, Patrick Henry, which has grown into one of the best programs in Southern California. Jeff also is a dad to two little leaguers and travel ball players, manager, volunteer umpire, successful realtor, church volunteer, and husband. Prior to becoming board president, Jeff ran the volunteer umpire program at San Carlos for two seasons.

Joe Lewis - Joe is a board member at La Mesa National Little League, coach, volunteer umpire, personal trainer, husband and dad to two sons, including one who plays little league and travel baseball. Last year, Joe helped launch MTG (More Than a Game) Cowboys, a division of Cowboys Baseball. Joe is among the coaches working to launch a new baseball training facility, More Than a Game, in San Diego. 

Chad Starkey - Chad pitched in college after playing high school ball for legendary coach Dennis Pugh at Mission Bay High, where Chad coached after his playing days ended. He is a husband and a father of two. His son plays little league at West Hills as well as travel baseball. Chad is a manager but he doesn’t coach his son. He leads a 9U travel team under an organization he recently helped launch, TBT SoCal-Starkey. His 13U team was ranked No. 1 in the West Region and No. 7 nationally last year. Most days you can find Chad at SD CAP in El Cajon, where he gives hitting and pitching lessons to dozens of young ball players, including Tony’s 11-year-old son Alex.

Our three guests shared advice for parents, coaches, and players, related to nerves, failure, car rides home, “daddy ball”, arm care, and much more. They also highlighted some of the ways baseball, and the love of the game, teaches kids life skills that serve them long after they’ve finished playing the game. 

Early on in the podcast, they discuss game-day parents and what should and should not be said from the stands. Their advice was blunt.

‍Listen to the full episode for more insights, plus reviews of some of San Diego’s best post-game spots, favorite taco and burrito shops, and what these baseball dads love doing most with their teams away from the field.

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