Kevin Loughlin has coached Little League and high school baseball for the better part of the past 20 years. In 2009 he took on a new demographic when he began managing the San Quentin Giants.
The San Quentin baseball program is more than 100 years old and one of the few that allows outside teams to participate. In 2005, Loughlin was invited to play with “The Willing,” one of the civilian teams that competes against inmates on prison grounds. Upon arrival, Loughlin and his teammates received the standard greeting.
“We have a no-hostage policy here,” a guard tells them. “That means we will not bargain the freedom of an inmate for your safety, but we will do everything we can to get you out safe and sound. And with that, welcome to San Quentin.”
This wasn’t the first time Loughlin heard this message. He had been drawn back by his love of baseball and to revisit an important chapter in his childhood.
In the late 1960s, San Rafael Little League home games were played at San Quentin State Prison. Inmates on good behavior, also known as trustees, served as umpires and groundskeepers during the off-season.
“I didn’t know what to expect playing inside a prison,” Loughlin says. “But once I saw the field, I knew it was all about baseball.”
Loughlin was the San Rafael Little League home run leader in 1968. In commemoration, the inmates etched his name and the number of home runs he hit onto the outfield wall.
Ten years later, Loughlin took a criminology course at San Diego State University. One day an ex-inmate from San Quentin spoke to the students about life after prison. During the lecture, Loughlin stated his full name before asking a question. After class the guest speaker approached him.
“He recognized my name from the home run wall,” Loughlin says. “He told me that his involvement with the San Rafael Little League got him through some of the toughest times.”
When asked to coach the San Quentin Giants in 2009, Loughlin seized the opportunity. He was eager to get involved with the Giants because their “passion for the game is contagious” and they “don’t take a single pitch for granted.”
“I learned so much playing baseball at San Quentin as a boy,” Loughlin says. “I wanted to give something back to the program.”
James “Duce” Allen, one of Loughlin’s former players, has been out of San Quentin for 11 months. He immediately enrolled in school and found work with Solar Richmond, a non-profit dedicated to creating “jobs for underemployed local residents.” He says things are “going well” and that he owes part of his success to Coach Loughlin.
“Kevin wasn’t afraid to tell us when we needed to work harder,” Allen says. “He helped me believe that even though I messed up I still had a shot.”
In July 2010, Loughlin won a contest to bat against Tim Lincecum, San Francisco Giants’ two-time Cy Young award winner.
“All the guys (at San Quentin) are huge fans; we all listen to the games.” Loughlin says. “They heard about the contest and said I should enter.”
Before stepping into the batters box, Loughlin presented Lincecum with a baseball signed by each member of the San Quentin Giants. According to Loughlin, Lincecum was humbled by the gift and said he was going to place it on his mantle next to his Cy Young awards.
“The 2010 San Francisco Giants reminded us all that baseball is a game of underdogs,” Loughlin says. “With hard work, dedication and a little luck you can achieve anything.”
Ryan Loughlin is the son of Kevin Loughlin, the San Quentin Giants baseball team’s assistant coach.