Altadena's Evans a cut above on diamond

Article Launched: 06/09/2008 10:28:35 PM PDT

For Altadena's Eleanor Evans, diamonds indeed are a girl's best friend.

Born in Pasadena in 1923, Evans has spent most of her life watching, or playing, baseball and softball. Which isn't surprising, considering her father, Dave Salazar, played minor league baseball and her son, Darrell Evans, played in the major leagues for 21 years. Her younger brother, Carlos, is a long-time umpire.

"He's the black sheep of the family," Evans joked.

Eleanor actually was an outstanding softball player in her time. She and her older sister Margaret played the game professionally for a couple years before World War II put a stop to outdoor events in the Southland.

Evans' father pitched in the old Arizona-Texas League in the 1930s. He had a couple shots at sticking with a Pacific Coast League team, but that was as far as he progressed. Grandson Darrell more than made up for that.

"It just worked out that I was around baseball, and baseball players, all the time," Eleanor said. "I loved the game the first time I saw it and I still love it.

"I have rooted for the Dodgers ever since they moved here to L.A. (in 1958). Darrell hates to hear that. He always accused me of rooting against him when he would come to town with the (Atlanta) Braves or (San Francisco Giants). I always told him, `I'm not rooting against you, I am rooting against your team.'

"Now, with my brother (Carlos), it's a little different. We used to go out to the games he worked, just to boo the umpire. We always said he was a ballplayer until his eyesight went bad, and then he became an ump."

Brother Carlos, 67, is quick to acknowledge as much.

"Oh yeah, Eleanor and Margaret always give me a bad time about being an umpire," Carlos said. "Our family reunions can get pretty spirited. I'm just the baby brother. I pretty much have to grin and bear it.

"The thing is, ours is a very loving family. A very close-knit family. But we are competitive. I suppose dad made us that way."

Eleanor began playing softball at age 14.

"I saw daddy playing, and I wanted to, too," she said. "So I got involved with softball. Eventually, got good enough to play professionally here in L.A. This was around 1939. Margaret and I caught on with a team sponsored by Karl's shoe company. There was a field we played on out on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood, it was across from the Mark C. Bloome tire company. Of course, we played in a lot of local leagues also.

"Let's see. We played at a park there in Burbank, it was where the airport parking lot is now. We also played a couple times at Gilmore Field there in Hollywood. In Pasadena, there used to be a diamond at Tournament Park there by Caltech. And of course we played at Brookside.

"Then there were fields at Montebello, Monterey Park, Baldwin Park, Alhambra, San Gabriel. Just about every city had a lighted field. And people would come out to watch us by the hundreds. Back before TV, what else was there to do?

"Softball is a great game. Back then, we used a ball that was slightly larger than the one the girls use now, and also softer. I don't know if I would want to play with that hard ball they use now. A gal could get hurt."

Eleanor, a centerfielder, and Margaret, a shortstop, were part of the Karl's touring team that played all across Southern California and into Arizona. Eleanor said her pay was $20 a month, plus expenses. "I felt like I was a queen," she said. "Twenty bucks back in the 1930s was a lot of money."

Once the war began, the Karl's squad played at Army and Navy camps and often challenged the servicemen to a co-ed game. They usually won.

"I guess the most excitement I had as a player was a time, this must have been around 1945, when someone from Channel 5, which had just started up, wanted to televise one of our games there at the field off of Sunset. They came out, with their one camera, and did the game. Sam Balter did the play-by-play, this was before Dick Lane or Stan Chambers was at the station, so you know how long ago that was!"

Once Eleanor married Bob Evans, she hung up her glove and cleats. Sons Darrell and Mike came along and she had a new role as coach. She worked with both her sons and taught them the game.

"Darrell always said the best coach he ever had was me," Eleanor said. "Well, he's lying, but that's nice to hear. Actually, his dad was a very good player also, and helped both our sons. It was just that Bob was at work during the Little League games, and I was a stay-at-home mom, so I would take them to the games, play catch with them and hit them grounders to get them warmed up. I never thought anything about it, but I suppose that was a bit unusual for the time.

"I never pressured either of my sons to play baseball. But, yes, I can remember saying, `My kids had better like sports.' Turns out they did."

The Evans moved to Altadena in 1953. Eleanor has been there ever since. Her husband died five years ago, but sister Margaret, now 87, is alive and well and living in Duarte.

Darrell, 61, currently is the hitting instructor for the Orange County Flyers of the Golden Baseball League.

"It's great that Darrell is still involved in pro baseball," Eleanor said. "The only thing better would be if he were coaching the Dodgers. You can see, I really am a loyal fan!"

So, the question remains, why was Eleanor Evans so taken by the diamond sports?

"You're out in the sunshine and fresh air, what's not to like?" she said. "You meet some of the nicest people at the ballpark. Now, I've got to go. The Dodgers game just came on the TV."