Ever since he can remember, baseball has been a very important part of the life of Mike Bennett.

The former Lompoc High School athlete, who played under legendary Braves coach Dan Bodary, could not remember when he wasnt playing baseball.

I started when I could walk and put a glove on, Bennett said recently during a visit at Elks Field in Santa Maria last week, where he was assisting in the coaching of the Lompoc 13-year-old Babe Ruth team in the District 6 tournament. I was playing in the living room and in the yard with my dad very early.

I was five years old when I saw the Detroit Tigers win the World Series in 1984 after that it was nothing but baseball year-round.

Bennett didnt even let shoulder problems keep him away from the game. He simply went from playing to umpiring, something he has done for more than 15 years.

In addition, his shoulder injury cleared up, allowing him to play in a Lompoc mens baseball league on Sundays, while he also plays two nights a week in a mens softball league.

Oh yeah, he also has found time to add coaching to his resume.

When I started umpiring high school varsity, I stopped umpiring youth leagues, Bennett said. Then one day, I went by the Babe Ruth field and ran into Bill Rule and George Meyer who asked if I was going to umpire their games.

When I told them no, they asked if I wanted to coach, so then I coached for about 10 years then took a couple years off.

But the lure pulled him back this season.

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Baseball’s in his blood