Created in 1975 by a group of young men in the Englewood section of Chicago, LA Posse began their rise by playing in the tournaments around their neighborhood such Ogden, Hamilton and Washington Parks. The team consisted of the following players:
Rufus Wright, Micheal Booker, Micheal Martin, Sam Woodson ( RIP), Marvin Bonds, Donald Woodson, Keith McKnight, Leonard Woodson , Dedrick Wright (RIP), Lester White, Rodney Phelps (RIP), Dwayne Hawkins, Darrell Wright, Charles Collins, Darrell Martin, Robert and Anthony Irby, Darnell Jones, Robert Cowen (RIP), Trotter McKnight, Tyrone Redding, Artez Jackson, Carl Carter, Darryl Jones, Gerald Redding and Lil Bozo.
In 1987 the team knew they needed to grow and get better so they reached out to some players they had been playing against in the local tournaments and the plan to move up and travel to parks outside the Englewood part of town began. They began playing in Blue Island and Alsip along with the local parks, the team began to make a name for themselves in the softball ranks. These new players were:
Kenny Stevens, Ced Roach, Robert Black, Stan Trimmell (RIP), Leon Leverette, Edward Kennedy (RIP), Edward Taylor, Tommie Moore, Reggie Taylor, Darren Stewart, William Weatherspoon Sr (RIP) & Jr, Carl Richard, Greg Smith and Calvin Van.
In 1988 with the breakup of South side WildBunch, the team acquired the services of most of their players along with the leadership and knowledge of their coach James Holmes (RIP). He transformed the team into a South side powerhouse by strengthening the defense and stabilizing their offense with the use of speed, opposite field hitting and power. His knowledge of the game and attention to details, converted a group of local players into one of the best teams on the South side during their era. His tough love, no nonsense approach to the game made players stronger and better at their part of the game. Some of his sayings were “This game has two sides to it and you have to play one of them” or “if you bend down and come up with nothing then you just messed up” or “You are a great player, but today you come have a seat next to me” and finally “I can find a position for you, just not on this team because maybe you just aint ready”.. They now began to travel and participate in tournaments held in Clyde Park, Mount Prospect and all the no gloves tournaments sponsored by Budweiser Beer Company. These new players were:
Stephen Brumfield, Anthony Jackson , Charles Golden, William Coleman , Andre Peoples, Kenneth Hairston (HOF), Anthony Henderson, Sam Taylor (HoF), Terry Allen (RIP), Coty Jackson, Leroy White, Drake Jones (HOF), Sam Porter, Jerry Bridges, Duke, Derrick Booker Maurice Miller and Jesse Chambers.
Special Thanks to Kevin Jones (1990), Charles Gordon, Gregory Cooley(2004), Michael Stevens (2000), Toot (2001), Tay (2003), Freddie Crosby (2003), Steve Dantley, Art Lewis, Vern, Vernon Wells, Vince Christian (1998), David Berry and Floyd Glover.
From 1988 to 2007 LA Posse was a force in South side softball and continued to chase their dream of winning the softball nationals until their breakup in 2008.