Jeff Tully
BURROUGHS HIGH -- Eight years ago, Jose Valle realized a dream in one
brief instant.
When he got a call offering him the head baseball coaching job at
Burroughs High, it brought Valle full circle to his alma mater as a
former Indian player and assistant coach.
Eight years later, he has helped build the Burroughs program into one
of the most respected in the area. Playing in the tough Foothill League,
Valle has his team competing for a league title year in and year out.
The team even won the league crown in 1997.
The Indians were 10-9 overall and 5-5 in league heading into Friday
night's home game against Valencia High.
But eight years as the Indians' head coach hasn't changed Valle much.
He still takes losses hard, gets over wins quickly, and goes right back
to work preparing for the next game and the next opponent.
Although his life is about baseball, baseball is not the only thing in
his life. He teaches three health classes at Burroughs and has been the
co-athletic director for two years.
But ask him and he will say that he is just a small cog in a
successful Burroughs wheel. In his opinion, it's the players who deserve
the credit for any success Burroughs baseball has had since he took over
in 1993.
"I don't know where we would be if it were not for players like Tommy
Perez, Wes Hutchison and now Tim Murphy. Guys like Karl Castro, Anthony
Fabrizio and Matty Hellman," Valle said. "They are not just great
players, but good people.
"When Matt Hellman comes back to work out with our team before playing
his senior year at Lewis and Clark [State College], the players listen to
him because he is someone who is an example of what hard work and
dedication can do for a person."
Hard work and dedication is important to Valle in the grand scheme of
things. So is having fun and creating an atmosphere where freshmen,
junior varsity and varsity teams at Burroughs are as close as family.
Indian baseball has always been as close as family to Valle, who grew
up watching his brother Miguel -- a 1978 graduate -- play for the
program. He fondly remembers watching his brother play his high school
games at Olive Recreation Center, and even taking a few bus trips with
the team as a youngster.
Now, Jose Valle is returning the favor. When he first got the job, he
inherited a team on the rise, thanks to the efforts of former head coach
Terry Scott and a field that is second to none in the area.
The field is a well-maintained little gem that is often packed with a
