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All-Pro Alumni baseball game brings memories

When the 2000 All-Pro Alumni game took place Sunday, members of the 1980 UA National Championship team took the opportunity to reunite.

For the UA alumni, it marked the 20th anniversary of UA's second national title.

Known as the "Cardiac Cats," the UA team came out of the loser's bracket to defeat Hawaii and California and win the national title.

The team consisted of future majors leaguers such as Ed Vosberg, Craig Lefferts, Terry Francona and Casey Candale.

"The reunion brought back a lot of memories," Vosberg, now a pitcher for the Colorado Rockies, said. "We watched some ESPN clips of the season. It was a lot of fun."

Between innings, the team, including UA head coach Jerry Stitt, was honored, commemorating the 1980 season. Stitt was an assistant on the club.

Prior to Sunday's game, selected alumni faced off against current Wildcats in a home run derby. Each team had three players competing. The current UA team, which consisted of sophomores Shelley Duncan and Ben Diggins along with senior Rob Shabansky, faced off against Alan Zinter, Damon Mashore, and Brian Becker of the alumni team.

The winner was Zinter, a catcher/first baseman currently in the Chicago Cubs' organization. The switch-hitter pounded six straight homers, many bouncing off of the scoreboard in right field.

Following his hitting display, Zinter preferred to talk about his return home.

"It's great to be back," he said. "It's always special to see everybody. I've got lifetime friends here."

Zinter, drafted in the first round of the 1990 draft by the New York Mets, bounced around between the Red Sox, Tigers and Mariners before the Cubs signed him in 1998. As a junior in college, Zinter was named the Pacific 10 Conference's co-Player of the Year.

"I've been around, so it's nice to be home," he said. "I've been with the Cubs for two years. I've been invited to the major-league camp, and I'm hoping to make the 25-man roster going into the season."

For the UA baseball program, Sunday's alumni game was more than a fund-raiser - it was also a great recruiting tool.

During the home run derby, prospective Wildcats could be seen lining the basepaths, getting a glimpse of a possible future calling.

"Is it a good recruiting tool? Oh yeah," Stitt said. "We have a bunch of (high school) juniors out here to watch a little. They see the (Scott) Ericksons, the (Trevor) Hoffmans, and the (Gil) Heredias and they get fired up."

Zinter agreed.

"It's a great recruiting tool," he said. "It's nice to see the high school guys come out here and see what they could do if they came here."

For current Wildcats, meeting the professionals was a chance to learn what it takes to make it to the big time.

"The guys had a chance to hang out with the pros in the morning," Stitt said. "They get to talk to the pros and see what kind of work ethic it takes to get there."