Long Beach State University Athletics
Baseball Media Day Set for February 13
2/15/2008 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Feb. 15, 2008
LONG BEACH, Calif-- Thirteen area college baseball coaches and their players will be available for the sixth annual Southern Californai College Baseball Media Day on Wednesday, February 13 starting at 9:30 a.m. at the Walter Pyramid. The area's college baseball fix will leadoff the season, which now has a uniform start date of February 22. The Dirtbag Baseball program will serve as the host and provide a catered lunch to the media following the event.
WATCH THE MEDIA LIVE ON CSTV.COM
Order of teams: UC Irvine, UCLA, Cal Poly, UC Riverside, UC Santa Barbara, CS Fullerton, CS Northridge, Long Beach State, Loyola Marymount, San Diego, Pepperdine, San Diego State, USC.
From San Luis Opispo to San Diego, professional baseball comes from Southern California. Hall of Famers Jackie Robinson (UCLA), Ozzie Smith (Cal Poly), Tony Gwynn (San Diego State) and Tom Seaver (USC) all played at area schools and over 150 former players are in the professional circuit.. Gwynn is currently the head coach for San Diego State and will be at the event.
In the collegiate setting, area teams have made 46 College World Series apperances (USC-21, Cal State Fullerton-15, Long Beach State-4, Pepperdine-2, UCLA-2, Loyola Marymount-1, UC Irvine-1) and won 21 national championships (USC-12, Cal State Fullerton-4, Pepperdine-1, UC Riverside-2 at D-II, CS Northridge-2 at D-II). The Titans and Anteaters, both made it to Omaha last season.
This year seven, San Diego (No. 7), CS Fullerton (No. 16), Long Beach State (No. 17), UCLA (No. 18), UC Irvine (No. 26), Pepperdine (No. 29), UC Riverside (No. 35), are all ranked in Collegiate Baseball's top-40 pre-season poll.
Head coaches and players from Long Beach State, Cal State Fullerton, UC Irvine, UC Riverside, Cal State Northridge, Cal Poly, UC Santa Barbara, USC, UCLA, Pepperdine, Loyola Marymount, the University of San Diego, and San Diego State will each talk about their teams, which will be broadcas over the web live for fans throughout the country.
Media are asked to RSVP to Niall Adler at Long Beach State, nadler@csulb.edu by January 15 to reserve a spot. Out of town media are also encouraged to attend with accomodations for hotel rooms, available.
SELECT PLAYERS WHO PLAYED AT AREA SCHOOLS:
Jackie Robinson-UCLA, Hall of Famer
Ozzie Smith-Cal Poly, Hall of Famer
Tom Seaver, USC, Hall of Famer, Cy Young
Tony Gwynn, San Diego State, Hall of Famer, 3,000 Career Hits
Mike Scott-Pepperdine, National League Cy Young
Mark McGwire-USC, Single-Season home run leader
Jason Giambi-Long Beach State, American League MVP
Bobby Crosby-Long Beach State, American League Rookie of the Year
Jered Weaver-Long Beach State, Angels Starter
Mark Prior-USC, Padres Starter
Barry Zito-USC/UC Santa Barbara, Starting Pitcher, Giants
Troy Glauss-UCLA, World Series MVP, Angels
Eric Karros-UCLA, All-Star First Baseman
Phil Nevin-CS Fullerton, All-Star
Mark Kotsay-CS Fullerton, A's Outfielder
Adam Kennedy-CS Northridge, All-Star Second Baseman, Cardinals
Troy Percival, UC Riverside, All-Star Reliever, Angels
Brady Anderson, UC Irvine, All-Star Outfielder, Orioles
Chris Spier, UCSB, 13-year Major Leaguer
Billy Bean, Loyola Marymount
