Jake
08-21-2006, 07:27 PM
6-foot-8 13 year old towers over foes
By GENARO C. ARMAS, Associated Press Writer Sun Aug 20
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060820/ap_on_sp_ot/bby_little_league
http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/ap/20060819/capt.a1e5ea7000864138b5bba94e6ec480f8.llws_saudi_arabia_cana da_baseball_pack111.jpg
Dhuhran, Saudi Arabia first baseman Aaron Durley, center, takes the
field with teammates Fitzmaurice, left, and George Luo to shake hands
with the Surrey, British Columbia, Canada team after Saudi Arabia won 5-0
SOUTH WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. - Aaron Durley towers over the competition at
the Little League World Series. The 13-year-old first baseman for
Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, stands an imposing 6-foot-8 and weighs 256 pounds.
"I was standing next to him and I was up to his elbows," Scott
Kingery, a 12-year-old, 4-foot-9 Phoenix shortstop, said after meeting
Durley.
At the secluded dorms where teams stay during the tournament, Durley
has become as much of an attraction as the pool, the pingpong table
and the video arcade.
The soft-spoken Durley doesn't mind the attention. He even lets
opponents snap pictures with him during down time.
But Durley, who played at the series last year, too — when he was a
mere 6-foot-4 — is crystal-clear about his top priority in South
Williamsport.
"I'm more confident this year, ready to do what I need to do," Durley
said after a practice. "Hit the ball out."
Fittingly, his favorite major leaguer is David "Big Papi" Ortiz, the
Boston Red Sox slugger.
Durley scored a run in his 2006 series debut last week. His next shot
to belt a homer came Sunday, when his Arabian American squad from
Dhahran was scheduled to face Saipan.
In early games Sunday, Columbia, Mo., routed Portsmouth, N.H., 14-5;
Columbus, Ga., beat Phoenix, 4-1; and Beaverton, Ore., defeated Lake
Charles, La., 9-1.
Arabian American is a fixture at the World Series, having qualified
the last seven years, and 12 of the last 13. The players' parents
primarily work for oil companies in the Middle East.
Dhahran might have had the longest road to Pennsylvania, qualifying
for the series by winning the Transatlantic region tournament in
Kutno, Poland, in late July.
The team has a peculiar baseball superstition — the players dye their
hair blonde for the World Series.
As if Durley wasn't easy enough to pick out in a crowd.
Columbia, Mo. manager Jeff Echelmeier watched Durley attract attention
while the player was standing on a porch near a path to the cafeteria.
"About four teams came through, and everyone wanted to know how tall
he was," Echelmeier said. "He said 'About 6-foot-8' about 40 times in
a row."
He's still growing, too: Durley only shared the tallest-player
designation last year. Series sponsors who shower players with free
equipment didn't have new spikes readily available for Durley, who
wears size 19 shoes.
Dhahran coach Tom Timoney said Durley takes the attention in stride.
"He's just a great kid," Timoney said while watching an infield
practice. "Very good-natured."
A little out of breath after running sprints with his teammates, the
mild-mannered Durley didn't say much after the practice.
Baseball isn't necessarily his favorite sport.
"It's kind of hard, because I like basketball," he said. "When it's
offseason for baseball, it's basketball. When it's offseason for
basketball, it's baseball."
By GENARO C. ARMAS, Associated Press Writer Sun Aug 20
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060820/ap_on_sp_ot/bby_little_league
http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/ap/20060819/capt.a1e5ea7000864138b5bba94e6ec480f8.llws_saudi_arabia_cana da_baseball_pack111.jpg
Dhuhran, Saudi Arabia first baseman Aaron Durley, center, takes the
field with teammates Fitzmaurice, left, and George Luo to shake hands
with the Surrey, British Columbia, Canada team after Saudi Arabia won 5-0
SOUTH WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. - Aaron Durley towers over the competition at
the Little League World Series. The 13-year-old first baseman for
Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, stands an imposing 6-foot-8 and weighs 256 pounds.
"I was standing next to him and I was up to his elbows," Scott
Kingery, a 12-year-old, 4-foot-9 Phoenix shortstop, said after meeting
Durley.
At the secluded dorms where teams stay during the tournament, Durley
has become as much of an attraction as the pool, the pingpong table
and the video arcade.
The soft-spoken Durley doesn't mind the attention. He even lets
opponents snap pictures with him during down time.
But Durley, who played at the series last year, too — when he was a
mere 6-foot-4 — is crystal-clear about his top priority in South
Williamsport.
"I'm more confident this year, ready to do what I need to do," Durley
said after a practice. "Hit the ball out."
Fittingly, his favorite major leaguer is David "Big Papi" Ortiz, the
Boston Red Sox slugger.
Durley scored a run in his 2006 series debut last week. His next shot
to belt a homer came Sunday, when his Arabian American squad from
Dhahran was scheduled to face Saipan.
In early games Sunday, Columbia, Mo., routed Portsmouth, N.H., 14-5;
Columbus, Ga., beat Phoenix, 4-1; and Beaverton, Ore., defeated Lake
Charles, La., 9-1.
Arabian American is a fixture at the World Series, having qualified
the last seven years, and 12 of the last 13. The players' parents
primarily work for oil companies in the Middle East.
Dhahran might have had the longest road to Pennsylvania, qualifying
for the series by winning the Transatlantic region tournament in
Kutno, Poland, in late July.
The team has a peculiar baseball superstition — the players dye their
hair blonde for the World Series.
As if Durley wasn't easy enough to pick out in a crowd.
Columbia, Mo. manager Jeff Echelmeier watched Durley attract attention
while the player was standing on a porch near a path to the cafeteria.
"About four teams came through, and everyone wanted to know how tall
he was," Echelmeier said. "He said 'About 6-foot-8' about 40 times in
a row."
He's still growing, too: Durley only shared the tallest-player
designation last year. Series sponsors who shower players with free
equipment didn't have new spikes readily available for Durley, who
wears size 19 shoes.
Dhahran coach Tom Timoney said Durley takes the attention in stride.
"He's just a great kid," Timoney said while watching an infield
practice. "Very good-natured."
A little out of breath after running sprints with his teammates, the
mild-mannered Durley didn't say much after the practice.
Baseball isn't necessarily his favorite sport.
"It's kind of hard, because I like basketball," he said. "When it's
offseason for baseball, it's basketball. When it's offseason for
basketball, it's baseball."