By Luke Laurrita
Staff Writer
At the start of their home-opener Feb. 13, the Men’s Baseball team unveiled a new banner on the left field wall to recognize and remember Phil “The Thrill” Reinhart, the team’s bat boy, and his impact on the program. Reinhart died at the end of July 2016, just before the fall semester began.
Reinhart suffered from a form of cerebral palsy. Once he began riding his bicycle, he realized bicycling was his favorite hobby. He would ride his bicycle to Wilson Park in Torrance every evening, because he had made friends with Murphy Su’a, the baseball team’s head coach at the time.
Reinhart loved baseball and eventually asked Su’a if he could be the team’s bat boy. Reinhart began his first season as the bat boy for Dominguez Hills in 2006 under Coach Su’a and Coach George Wing. He was immediately welcomed into the family by the players.
“Phil had an amazing memory, and was very knowledgeable about baseball,” Wing said.
“He would tell the coaches where to position the players and offer his scouting reports on the other teams. He remembered everything,”
As the years went on, Reinhart grew more comfortable and excelled in his role on the team. He built relationships with the coaches and players. The players loved him, but most of all, took him seriously because he did his job and expected the team to do theirs.
He would let the players know if they were not performing or doing their job. He would jokingly tease or threaten to leave and bat boy for the opposing team. The team knew Reinhart would never leave. He kept the team motivated and working hard. They knew if Reinhart was out there with a smile on his face, they could do anything.
