M. baseball hosts Bruin alumni in annual games

M. baseball hosts Bruin alumni in annual games

By Ruben Gutierrez

UCLA baseball will host their annual alumni game Saturday at
Jackie Robinson Stadium. Two teams consisting of former UCLA
players will play each other at noon. Following the first game, a
squad composed of alumni now playing Major League baseball will
take on the current Bruin lineup.

Among the headliners scheduled to appear are St. Louis Cardinals
third baseman Todd Zeile, Torey Lovullo, a second and third baseman
for the Seattle Mariners and Eric Karros, a first baseman for the
Los Angeles Dodgers. Zeile hit 19 home runs and Karros 14 in the
strike-shortened 1994 Major League season.

Several former UCLA players now playing in the minor leagues are
also scheduled to play. Among them Ryan McGuire, a first baseman
for Class A Lynchburg of the Boston Red Sox organization and Mike
Mitchell, also a first baseman for Class A Greensboro of the New
York Yankees organization. McGuire is best remembered as a 1993
consensus All-American. During his standout season, McGuire hit
.376 with 26 home runs and was also 3-0 from the mound with two
saves. Last year, Mitchell batted .339 and had 12 home runs and 46
RBI’s for UCLA.

"It really is a great feeling for me, having coached those
players. It’s great to see them all again; it’s like one big, happy
family reunion. In fact, I kind of divorce myself from this year’s
team on this day," UCLA head coach Gary Adams said.

The "old-timers" game will be played for four innings prior to
the five inning matchup between the current Bruins and the
pros.

Following the games, there will be cocktails and a banquet at
the faculty club. Five new members and one honorary member will
also be inducted into the UCLA hall of fame. Among the recent
players to be inducted are the Seattle Mariner’s Rich Amaral and
Shane Mack, formerly of the Minnesota Twins and now with the Tokyo
Giants via a lucrative $8.1 million contract. The honorary inductee
will be Jim Devere, a program booster who was instrumental in
securing radio telecasts for the Bruins.