Former players honor Winstead
By Dick Sparrer
How do you thank a man for dedicating more than 40 years of his life to high school baseball?
Well, former Los Gatos baseball players and the high school think they have found a way.
Los Gatos High and the former Wildcats celebrated the coaching career of longtime Gatos baseball coach Joe Winstead last Friday with the dedication of a plaque in his honor at the high school field where he spent so many afternoons from 1959 through the end of the century.
And on hand for the ceremonies on May 10 at the high school field were many of those people who have firsthand knowledge of Winstead's dedication to young people and the game of baseball--his former players.
At least two members of Winstead's first varsity team in 1962 were on hand for the event--Johnny Mesa, class of '62, and John Taughinbaugh, class of '63. Mesa was the captain of that first club coached by Winstead, and Taughinbaugh was named the team captain a year later.
Steve Shank, the most valuable player of the 1965 squad, and Chris Benson, the MVP in '66, were other former players at the ceremonies, along with Bob Allen ('65), Mike Denevi ('71 team captain), Matt Vaughan ('74) and Dan Vaughan ('78 team captain). During Winstead's 38 years as the varsity head coach at Los Gatos, his clubs recorded 545 wins in 933 games for an impressive .584 winning percentage. The Wildcats finished first, second or third in 24 of those 38 seasons, including seven league championships.
"I never felt that winning a ballgame was ever the most important thing," Winstead said. "When you walk onto a field, there are so many important things for a young man to learn."
Winstead, a member of the San José State University Spartan Baseball Hall of Fame, went on say, "I've been at a great school, and I've had some great kids. I've been blessed with so many things."
Saratoga, California Since 1955
