Diamonds with Dad

Baseball has been a sport associated with fathers and their children.

Iowa City Regina baseball coach Andy Gahan bonded with his father, Tom, through baseball. He has also shared the love of the game during his time leading the Regals with his three young daughters.

So, Gahan teamed with Iowa City High Coach Brian Mitchell to create a showcase for prep baseball, while providing an opportunity for fathers to share the game with their kids.

The programs will hold a Father/Son Baseball camp today at noon at University of Iowa's Duane Banks Field followed by a junior varsity and varsity doubleheader between the Regals and the Little Hawks. For $25, father and son pairs can attend the pregame clinic, including a T-shirt for the child, and entry to both games.

Gahan had a desire for a Sunday game and Mitchell was 'on board” when contacted last year.

'My goal for this thing was just really making baseball a fun experience for the family on a Sunday afternoon,” Gahan said. 'I was like what is a better day than Father's Day.”

Even though Gahan was a multisport athlete at Regina, baseball was special and a source of fond memories with his father.

'I think back to the days with my dad when I was a kid,” Andy Gahan said. 'That is what I remember on Father's Day, going out in the backyard. We didn't go to the ball diamond, but going to the backyard to play catch and having him hit me ground balls.”

Tom Gahan recalled baseball playing a big role in his son's childhood, watching him play from teeball in Iowa City through college at Wartburg. The Gahan yard served as a gathering place for many ballgames.

'There was a lot of baseball played in our backyard over the years,” Tom Gahan said. 'He was a big Cubs fan. When he was young, he would pretend he was Jody Davis or Ryne Sandberg when we played in the backyard together.”

Fathers and their children will be able to experience that in the outfield at Duane Banks Field. Andy Gahan said 35 to 40 duos of various ages participated last year at City High's diamond at Mercer Park. The goal is to make it bigger and better each year. Tom Gahan is proud his son provides this chance to others.

'I think it's a good opportunity for kids to be involved with their parents and play the game, getting together on a Sunday and have it centered on baseball and sports,” Tom Gahan said. 'I think it's a great idea.”

Families seem to embrace baseball more than other sports. A leisurely day at the ballpark and watching a game promotes fun and togetherness.

'Baseball and families, even more specifically fathers, go hand-in-hand,” said Andy Gahan, who currently coaches his nephew, Jacob Gahan. 'It's a much different feeling than any other sport. You watch with your family and dad. To have that joint camaraderie is pretty sweet.”

The Gahans calendar flipped according to sports seasons. Tom Gahan watched his son develop into a better baseball player as he got older and then parlayed his interest into a 16-year coaching career at his high school alma mater, which will end after this season when he becomes an elementary school principal in Coralville.

'I think (his love) kept him interested in the game,” Tom Gahan said. 'I think he liked the game so much that he wanted to continue to participate and that was true in coaching.”

Like the time he spent with his father, Andy Gahan has reversed roles with his three daughters - 12-year-old Elly, Annie, 11, and Natalie, who is 7. They have carried on the love for baseball and softball held by their father and mother, Emily. You can find them working on the Regals' home or hanging around the dugout when they don't have their own activities.

'They have grown up on the baseball field,” Andy Gahan said. 'Ever since they were born, each one of them, have been on the diamond, riding the tractor. Actually, the oldest can drag the field herself, now.

'They have been just as involved in baseball as I was as a kid with my father.”

Unfortunately, Andy Gahan will be solo for most of the day that honors fathers. His dad will be traveling and his daughters have sports tournaments of their own. He plans on them arriving sometime during the day's festivities.

'They will be there in spirit at the beginning,” Andy Gahan said. 'Hopefully, they will be there by the end, but they don't want to miss the last one being the coach down there.”

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