"Real Life" William Foley meets fiction hero Billy Ray Reynolds

Billy Ray Reynolds was and still is a fictional character. He faced many obstacles during the summer of 1962. William Foley is a real-life baseball player whose journey through life has led him to the southwestern desert...and just maybe a return to baseball and a spot on the roster with the real-life 60-and-over Tucson Old Timers (TOTS).

Billy Ray, an 11-year-old boy, was the main character in the middle-reader, make-believe book Billy's Victory, released in 2008 by Dan Price, who is currently in his 14th season with the TOTS and the club's historian.

Foley played seven years in the minors -- all with the Milwaukee Brewers affiliates, A, AA, and AAA. Foley played in 536 games, had 2,076 plate appearances, scored 301 runs, and collected 528 hits, with 102 home runs and 386 RBI, while batting .289 during those seven seasons. 1978, while playing A ball at Burlington, Foley hit 34 home runs.

The shock of losing his father led Billy Ray into a world of silence -- the words just wouldn't flow freely. Instead, he was left with a big lump in his throat, as if the words were stuck behind a closed door with no way out.

Billy Ray's father had taught him everything about baseball -- how to hit, run, field, and all the game's mental aspects. After ten years in the minors, his father got his call up to the New York Yankees, but on his way to spring training, a terrible car accident would end the life of Big John Reynolds.

Billy Ray's mother decided to move back to her hometown of Johnsonville, hoping that reuniting her son with Grandma and Grandpa and the loving and caring townspeople in the small town would bring the young man back to reality. And, of course, there was a Little League team looming just beyond the big oak trees. Billy Ray was now in the right place at the right time.

On the other hand, the real-life journey of William Foley began in Flushing, New York, in 1956. A baby was born and would grow into an exceptional ball player and become a high school star as a third baseman in Bowie, Maryland. Foley was so good he would end up at Clemson, not as a third baseman, but as a catcher. "Not exactly what I had in mind. Catching wears you out." Foley said today at Udall Park, the home field of the 60-and-over Tucson Old Timers.

Foley, now 65, was drafted twice in high school by the Minnesota Twins, but his father, Edward F. Foley, said. "That's a feather in your cap, but you're going to Clemson." Why argue with his father? After all, his dad was in the midst of a 30-year career with the FBI! Besides, his dad, a Notre Dame grad, knew how tough it was in the real world, although he did get a look-see with the Boston Red Sox in 1952 and played in the Industrial Leagues.

The young Foley would play three years behind the plate at Clemson. The Tigers' coach, Bill Wilheim, had a better spot in mind for the kid from Maryland, so playing third base was simply out of the question.

Foley never returned to the hot corner.

It wasn't long before Sal Bando came a calling, and Foley was signed by the Milwaukee Brewers and spent the next seven years in the minors but never got the call up to the Big Show. But Foley's minor league career was definitely something to write home about. For some, his stats would be career-like for many on-the-way-up ball players. At one point, Foley would venture within 300 miles of Tucson and play for El Paso in the Texas League. He would play in 108 games, step to the plate 453 times, score 76 runs, bang out 128 hits, hit 23 home runs, knock in 106 runs, and finish  1982 with a .308 batting average.

That is real life, folks!

Foley said it was tough to stay healthy, especially as a catcher. Of course, he was disappointed that he never got the call to the majors. With the numbers he put up, you have to wonder why? As a free agent, the Chicago Cubs showed some interest, but it didn't pan out, and in 1984, he was released.

Now, he was nearing 30, and Foley felt lost by his own admission. "I did not know where to go," he said. "Baseball was all I knew. I tried to return to college and finish my degree, but that didn't work out."

So, suddenly, baseball was put on the back burner for the final time. And the fire was slowly burning out.

"To be honest with you, I battled depression and anxiety, " Foley added. "Of course, I'm not the only one who has to deal with obstacles in their life."

This brings us to the fictional world of Billy Ray Reynolds.

Grandma owned the local drugstore in Johnsonville, and Grandpa was a famous but retired baseball clown. The local school teacher in Johnsonville doubled as the Little League coach, and the hardware store owner was the team's sponsor. Together, they all helped Billy return to reality, but it took a startling event at Willow Creek to force Billy Ray to run through the forest, sail down a big hill, and rush down Main Street and into the drugstore to help save his Grandpa from a snake bite.

Billy Ray uttered his first words. Billy was back! He joined the Little League team, and the rest of the story can be found at the end of Billy's Victory. But it was quite the journey for the young man, and many people helped him along the way as he returned to baseball...and life.

William Foley now has that connection. After years and years away from baseball, he showed up this week and found himself in two real-life games at Udall Park. Granted, the fellas he plays with today range in age from 60 to 79, but they all play for the love of the game, three days a week, year in and year out.

"I've batted six times, and I have two hits; that's a start," Foley said with a grin.

One more game, and Foley may be asked to join the team. In fact, he may become an official TOT in the coming weeks. The word around the dugout today: "He's a player."

The newcomer will soon find out there are 45 other members of the amateur ball club—all with backgrounds and stories of their own—as the organization rolls through its 53rd season.

With the help of his sister, Anne, and his brother, Ted Foley, now 13-year residents of Arizona, along with a little push from the best-organized old-timers' baseball team West of the Rio Grande, William may just find his place in the sun. 

Billy Ray Reynolds indeed found his Victory.

And just maybe William Foley is in the right place at the right time to find his or at least get the bat on the ball once again.

Photo: The young Mr. Foley, 65, at Udall Park this morning.