Little League Pair Ousted for Burning Jersey : Sports: ‘My coach and I made a wrong choice,’ the suspended manager of the Yankees of Anaheim Hills says in an apology. Some parents supported him.

ANAHEIM — A Little League manager, dismissed along with his coach for burning an opponent’s jersey in an attempt to rally his team, apologized Thursday and called the incident a “gesture of fun” that was an unfortunate mistake.

“My coach and I made a wrong choice,” said Randy L. Pangborn, who has managed the Yankees of Anaheim Hills for six years. “It was done merely as a gesture of fun. People who know me know it was in fun. It was not malicious. For this, I am truly sorry.”

Anaheim Hills Little League officials disciplined Pangborn and his coach, Mark Leuenburger, late Wednesday night after a lengthy meeting of the board of directors at which Pangborn admitted that he and Leuenburger set fire to a replica of an A’s jersey. Several outraged parents who witnessed the incident had called league officials to complain.

Board members not only stripped Pangborn of his team but also kicked him off the board for the remainder of the season, relieved him of his position as field director and removed him as manager of the league’s all-star team, a job the players elected him to.

“Little League is supposed to be safe, build character and sportsmanship, and show children how to get along,” said Robert Jackson, district administrator for 18 Little Leagues in Orange County. “This is was not the right thing to do. I have not found anyone who thinks otherwise.”

Jackson said board members reviewed the incident at the meeting and were concerned about safety as well as the image of Little League managers. Although Pangborn’s record and his own presentation were considered, Jackson said, “the action taken was appropriate.”

Pangborn and some parents, however, said they thought that the discipline was extreme considering the fact that Pangborn has managed the team for six years and has worked hard to improve the skills of his boys, as well as find adequate fields for league play.

“I asked them to forgive me,” said Pangborn, who teaches children with learning disabilities at South Junior High School. “I think the punishment was too harsh. People make mistakes, but I make one mistake on one day and those six years of work don’t count anymore.”

Witnesses said the incident involving the jersey began about 5 p.m. Monday, half an hour before the Yankees and the A’s--teams made up of boys aged 10 to 12--took the field at Crescent Intermediate School on Gerda Drive.

During warm-ups, Pangborn and Leuenburger staked up a duplicate of a green and yellow A’s jersey on the pitcher’s mound. After being encouraged by Pangborn, Leuenburger set the jersey on fire with a lighter, witnesses said.

As it burned, Pangborn conducted infield practice, occasionally pausing to yell at Todd Sterman, the A’s star hurler, and to urge his own team on to victory.

Parents said Pangborn’s attempt to psyche out the A’s apparently worked; the previously undefeated team lost, 3-1. The Yankees scored all their runs in the first inning, some on errors, including a wild throw by Sterman that sailed over the first baseman’s head.

Although witnesses said they thought they saw Sterman’s number on the flaming jersey, Pangborn said it was the number 4, not Sterman’s 17. He also denied that two players were used to block the wind so that the jersey could be set on fire.

Ironically, Sterman and other A’s players ate pizza with the Yankees after the game was over, Pangborn said. “Sterman was with all my kids. There were no hard feelings.”

Parents who supported Pangborn said he is an excellent and devoted manager who will be missed. Gone will be someone who gets involved with his players and gives out baseballs weekly to team members for achievements on the field, they said. He has handed them out for no-hitters, home runs, hustle and player of the week.

At a team meeting Thursday night at Canyon Presbyterian Church in Anaheim Hills, parents of Yankee players appointed Mike Hayes and Jim Frazier as replacements for Pangborn and Leuenburger. Both new leaders were recommended by Pangborn after he conferred with parents following the Little League’s decision Wednesday night.

“I want the kids to have the best coach,” Pangborn said after Thursday’s meeting. During that session, he said, “they asked the children if they wanted to go on, and they said yes.” The team will play its next game Monday against the A’s; the winner will be in first place.

It had been his dream to lead the team to the Little League championships, Pangborn said, something he believes that the Yankees are capable of. “I feel very troubled. I feel bad for the kids. I feel we’ve let them down.”

Thursday’s meeting was restricted to parents and team members, several of whom rallied behind Pangborn.

“I like Randy. He’s the best coach in the league,” the team’s catcher, 11-year-old Craig Scott, said after the meeting. “I’ve been on his team for two years, and I have the highest respect for him.”

Added Kyle Rivera, 12, who plays second base and right field: “I’m kinda disappointed. All that practice we’ve gone through. . . . We’ve done very well. I don’t see why he should be thrown out.”

“He is an intense coach but an excellent coach,” Brent Jones, whose son plays for the Yankees, said in a telephone interview. “The board has made a mistake. I don’t agree with what he did, but it has been blown all out of proportion. He is aggressive and outspoken, yet he is a big teddy bear. The kids are gonna lose.”

Parents said Pangborn has been concerned about safety on the field, purchasing batting helmets that fit each player and making sure team members are separated during outfield practice so that they don’t collide while trying to catch fly balls.

“Parents want their children on his team, that’s the kind of manager he is,” said Frank Pangborn, his brother. “He has a positive attitude and is a good motivator. The kids love him.”

Staff writer Jeffrey A. Perlman contributed to this story.