NVLL Legends Profile: Arthur Plump
Arthur James Plump, a lifelong Vallejoan, has coached and supported past and present North Vallejo Little Leaguers for nearly 40 years.
Plump, an NVLL alum who played high school baseball in Vallejo, began as a coach for his first NVLL farm team at the age of 30. Since then, he's coached on all levels and has seen thousands of little leaguers come through North Vallejo to become great athletes or great citizens.
When he's not coaching, Plump continues to support Vallejo athletes by attending games at the pee wee football to the high school levels.
Q & A with Coach Plump
What is the one constant about North Vallejo Little League?
The talent keeps coming. The competition was always great. All of the leagues around Vallejo had great players. In North Vallejo, you can always count on great talent on the field. Vallejo is a sports city. There were guys who came through North Vallejo Little League that were either pros or semi-pro players. We had some kids play at North Vallejo without any experience. And some of those kids were just as good as the ones with experience.
What is the one constant about North Vallejo Little League?
The talent keeps coming. The competition was always great. All of the leagues around Vallejo had great players. In North Vallejo, you can always count on great talent on the field. Vallejo is a sports city. There were guys who came through North Vallejo Little League that were either pros or semi-pro players. We had some kids play at North Vallejo without any experience. And some of those kids were just as good as the ones with experience.
What makes North Vallejo Little League so successful in the past?
The support. Everyone would come out to help out during the games. We had coaches, we had parents and we had volunteers. They all wanted to help out because they wanted to follow the kids. The kids had the desire to win and everyone was behind them. You knew that you were going to get a good game if you came to the ballpark. And you knew there was going to be great support at the games, too.
Who were some of the great players you've seen come through North Vallejo?
I remember guys like Chris Williams. Josh Jackson and Ed Williams. Then, there's Damon Hollins. Joey Thurston, guys like Dave Bernstine, Dallas Bernstine, Joel Dixon, Marcel Longmire and, of course, there was CC Sabathia. We had a lot of guys who played Minor League ball, some went to the Majors, and some left baseball after high school. But they're considered North Vallejo legends.
When you're coaching these kids, what are some things you want to instill in them besides being good ball players?
More important than being good ball players, we want them to be good kids. You have to be a good sport and you have to take the winning with the losing. And you can't be hot-headed. Some of these kids start off hot-headed, but you have to stay with them because they belong here. We try to straighten them out as best as we can. And most of the time, when they're done playing at North Vallejo, they come out being good people in society. That's one of the main things we try to teach while they're with us.
I see a lot of kids start out without much; you knew they had something in them, but it was a question of what we could do to help him bring that talent out. And if they work hard, you can easily see the progress. These kids start out so young. But if you get the fundamentals through to them, they start to really get it. It may take years, but they'll eventually get it. Before you know it, they're bigger, they're stronger and they're smarter. Where do you see North Vallejo Little League 5 years from now?
I hope it gets back to the old times. It's down right now. But I see things coming around. More parents are getting their kids interested. If the parents can get the kids off the video games and keep them physically active, they will be ok. It starts with tee-ball. If we get a good group of tee-ball kids, they're going to go through north Vallejo Little league. The more fun they have, the more likely they'll stay with it. If the kids are active, the parents will stay active with them.
Look for more Legends profiles soon!
