By Kyle Jorrey
jorrey@theacorn.com

A TEAM EFFORT-Eric Guillen has been a standout on the Thousand Oaks' baseball team since 2003, when the team won its first ever CIF championship. His father (inset), Carl Guillen, is a coach at Oaks Christian School. The two have a unique bond in baseball.

The bond between Thousand Oaks’ senior Eric Guillen and his father, Carl, is one forged inside the chalked lines of a baseball diamond.

Their story is of a dream deferred, of a son trying to chase down the opportunity that was never given to his father. It’s also a story about responsibility and service, commitment and hard work, but more than anything it’s a story about a father and son in love with baseball.

A different kind of draft

The story begins in Lancaster, Calif., at Antelope Valley High School in the late 1960s, where Carl excelled as a second baseman/leftfielder on a successful team that featured soon-to-be No. 1 draft pick Steve Chilcott (selected one slot ahead of Reggie Jackson in the 1966 amateur draft). Other comparable players on the squad were getting the attention of national scouts, and thoughts of stardom were aplenty for Carl.

After graduating, the undersized but speedy Guillen played a year at Antelope Valley Junior College before getting the news that would forever change his life. Like so many young men in his generation, he had been drafted to fight in Vietnam.

"I always use to joke to Eric that ‘Yeah, I got drafted,’" Carl said. "only it wasn’t into Major League Baseball, it was into the Army."

Though a burning desire to try and play professional baseball remained, his country had called upon him and Carl Guillen wasn’t about to dishonor that commitment. After all, Guillen’s family had a long and proud military tradition—and when his brother, Salvador Guillen, a highly-decorated military officer, got wounded in Vietnam, the government looked to his younger brother to fill in.

"For me, it was something I had to do for what was going on," Carl said. "The country called on me to do a job and I went and did it. I didn’t have any hostility . . . It was what I was ready to do."

Carl served his 10-month tour of duty with the Army’s Fourth Infantry Division in the Central Highlands near the city of Pieku and returned home unharmed. Like so many veterans, the conflict over the war made Carl’s homecoming less than receptive.

After "floating" around for a year, Carl got married and then left California to attend college at Virginia Commonwealth University, where he would get his degree.

His course of life had caused him to leave his first love, baseball, behind. But not for too long.

The next generation

Eric Guillen had the speed and athleticism to play a lot of sports when he was growing up, but for some reason, his first choice was always baseball.

Chances are it had something to do with Carl, his in-house coach, who from a very young age had started teaching his son about the intricacies of game he loved so much.

"He always put so much effort into me and helping me learn the game," Eric said. "He wanted me to get the most out of baseball because he didn’t get the same opportunity."

As he got older, Eric’s desire to commit to baseball grew exponentially, and soon, it was his favorite pastime—spring, summer or fall.

"He said, ‘Dad, I want to get into baseball because that’s what you loved," Carl said. "And that was real special to me."

Competing on local and traveling teams with many of his future Lancer teammates, guys like David Iden and David Fonseca, Eric began to create his own success on the diamond. And his father was always close by, encouraging his son to keep focused, keep working and never take it for granted.

"His dad has always been his coach. Eric never has taken any lessons from anyone else," said Iden, who’s become one of Eric’s best friends. "Their always hitting together, fielding together . . . It’s sort of like a team effort."

Once he landed in high school, he quickly caught the eye of T.O. head coach Rod Stillwell, who was in need of some defensive help in the outfield. Though a natural second baseman like his father, Eric happily jumped at the chance to play on varsity as a sophomore.

"He looked at the big picture, not what was best for him," Stillwell said. "He realized he had to do what’s best for the team. . And he’s athletic enough, I could put him anywhere on the field and he can play. . . . Eric’s a very And he’s athletic enough, I could put him anywhere on the field and he can hold his own. . . . Eric’s a very unselfish player who does whatever’s asked of him."

A few months later and Eric was the starting leftfielder on the Lancers’ CIF title winning team, a thrill he hopes to repeat this year as a senior.

Separate, but still connected

After leading his team in batting average (.379) and home runs (6) last season, Eric has high hopes for himself and the Lancers in 2005. Things are looking good early as T.O. is off to a 5-1 start.

Only this year Carl Guillen isn’t watching intently on the sidelines. That’s because the father who loved to coach is now doing so at Oaks Christian School. He’s an assistant on varsity and the head coach of the junior varsity squad.

"This year, his senior year, I’ll probably miss 90 percent of his games," Carl said. "But our relationship is strong enough that I’m able to do this. Eric understands that coaching baseball is what I love and he’s the one that said ‘go ahead and do it Dad.’"

Eric agreed.

"I know my dad, he just loves to coach. I noticed for the past couple years when he didn’t coach me he was getting restless, and now that he’s coaching again, I feel he’s a lot happier," Eric said. "I know it’s something he had to do for himself."

And even though he’s not right there on the sidelines, Carl is still available for game day advice or some extra sessions in the batting cage.

"If I’m in a slump or struggling, my Dad can see better than anyone else what I’m doing wrong," Eric said. "He gets me back to the basics. To the lessons he taught me when I was a little kid. And things always get better."

And while it’s a matter of business, it’s also another invaluable opportunity for a father and son to enjoy an afternoon together with a bat and glove. Especially with Eric heading off next year to college—he’s already got offers from South Carolina and Long Beach State.

"The opportunities baseball has given me and Eric to create a relationship as a father and son have been incredible," Carl said. "Some dad’s go fishing or camping. We had baseball."

Lessons learned

As proud as Carl is for Eric’s achievements, he’s most proud of the road he’s taken to get there. It’s one paved with hard work and commitment, and with knowledge of just how fragile this baseball dream really is.

"It makes me proud to see how hard he works at it because he knows everybody doesn’t have the opportunity to play baseball in high school and college, and he knows how quickly this game can be taken away from you," Carl said. "It might not be getting drafted; it might be a career-ending injury. But he knows it can be taken away from you in a heartbeat."

Eric’s approach to the game reflects the knowledge he’s obtained from understanding the path taken by his father.

"I’ve never take it for granted, I always go out there and give 110 percent," Eric said. "But at the same time I try to have a lot more fun and relax. Because I know I’m lucky to be able to play this game and I want to enjoy it."

While his future in baseball remains uncertain, Eric knows without a doubt whatever happens to him on his journey he’ll have a loving father waiting back at home for him—with a big hug and plenty of valuable baseball advice.

"I’d love to play in the Major Leagues, but either way I know my dad will be proud of me as long as I give it my best shot and get an education along the way," Eric said. "What’s the most important are the memories we have together playing baseball, those are something I’ll always have with me."