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Tuesday, December 06, 2005
Dabawenyo shortstop plays the silent hero
By Charles Raymond A. Maxey
MANILA -- Lost in the euphoria of Team Philippines' highly emotional triumph in the 23rd Southeast Asian (SEA) Games baseball event was the scintillating performance of shortsop Edmer del Socorro.
As the Filipino players celebrated on the field after beating Thailand before thousands of adoring Filipino fans Sunday afternoon, Socorro was his usual silent self, although grinning from ear to ear.
Del Socorro, a criminology student at the University of Mindanao in Davao City, did join his teammate as they ran down the field but was snatched by his coach Edgar delos Reyes from the pack.
Delos Reyes gave Del Socorro a hug near the Philippine dugout as deafening yells reverberated around the hollowed Rizal Memorial ballpark grounds.
The two made a touching scene, which was hardly noticed. The focus of attention was on the Filipino batters and officials giving each other high-fives and chanting along with the huge crowd.
Delos Reyes gave credit to Del Socorro's outstanding play in the finals.
The 24-year-old from Davao finished the abbreviated match with four RBIs to his name courtesy of his bat. He had a triple, a double, a couple of singles to get the offense going for the Philippines in the lopsided match.
But despite his magnificent performance, Del Socorro refused to take credit as he cited team effort as the main factor that propelled the Philippines to lop-sided victories in the Games.
"We played for the country. It was a team effort," said Del Socorro, whose booming triple in the eighth inning scored two runs that all but finished off the Thai side.
During the noisy celebration, Del Socorro could only flash smile as he watched the ecstatic Filipino fans doing their thing in the stands.
Deep inside him, he knew he had made their day.
(December 6, 2005 issue)
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