Andre Ethier to buy uniforms for Phoenix high school team

Reporting from Phoenix -- Andre Ethier is paying for new uniforms for the baseball team at inner-city Camelback High. Ethier attended nearby St. Mary’s High in Phoenix.

“I’ve been pretty excited and choked up about this,” Camelback Coach Todd Goertzen said.

Camelback reached the state finals in 1985, but the baseball program declined as the surrounding neighborhood changed. Most of the players are sons of Mexican immigrants who didn’t play baseball before high school because of the high cost of equipment. Many players come from single-parent households. Until recently, the team had one bat for the entire team.

The Spartans have won one game in each of the last two seasons; they are winless this season and lost one of their games by a 38-0 margin.

But, Goertzen noted, “They came back the next day. They’re growing as men.”

New Balance, which recently signed Ethier to an endorsement deal, will provide the team with shoes.

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Andre Ethier to buy uniforms for Phoenix high school team