Billy Beane Headlines Pacific Baseball Community Night on February 3rd
Stockton native Eddie Guardado, Pacific alum Hunter Carnevale to be honored
December 17, 2010
Stockton, CA - The fourth annual Pacific Baseball Community Night, sponsored by the Paulsen Family and New York Life, will take place on Thursday, February 3rd at 5:00 PM at the Hilton Stockton. The event will feature Oakland A’s general manager Billy Beane, along with other local baseball celebrities and the entire 2011 University of the Pacific Tigers baseball team.
Pacific head coach Ed Sprague, an 11 year Major League Baseball veteran, will discuss the upcoming season which gets underway on February 18th when the Tigers host national power Kansas State at Klein Family Field.
Beane will be the evening’s keynote speaker offering a unique perspective from inside the game of baseball by a man whom Sports Illustrated named one of the ten best executives in all of professional sports. He is also the subject of the Michael Lewis bestseller book Moneyball, soon to be a major motion picture staring academy award winner Brad Pitt.
“We feel lucky to have one of baseball’s most innovative GM’s on hand for this year’s event,” says Sprague. “It continues the tradition of front line speakers we’ve had in recent years, following Scott Boras, Tony LaRussa and Jim Abbott. We're also appreciative of the Paulsen Family for their continued sponsorship of this special night."
As part of the evening’s festivities, two-time American League all-star and Stockton native Eddie Guardado will be honored with an award sponsored by the Hilton Stockton for his achievements in professional baseball. Guardado spent 17 years in the big leagues as a relief pitcher with the Twins, Mariners, Reds and Rangers, and holds the Twins’ all time record for saves in a season.
In addition, Pacific’s 2010 most valuable player and current New York Met farmhand Hunter Carnevale will be on hand to receive the San Joaquin County Amateur Player of the Year Award. Carnevale was a first team All Big West selection in his senior season, helping the Tigers set the school record for wins against division 1 opponents.
“It’s not often a relief pitcher earns team MVP honors but that just shows what a special season he had," said Sprague. "His versatility was instrumental in what turned out to be one of our most successful seasons in school history."
The event will feature interactive games for kids, along with a youth baseball equipment raffle. All children 12 & under will receive a free raffle ticket at the door.
For more information and to reserve a table or purchase tickets, please contact Pat Bennett or Ed Brink with Focused Sports & Entertainment at (209) 473-6677.
About Pacific Baseball
Pacific Baseball mission is to build an integrated program which successfully competes on a national level, graduates student-athletes who excel in the classroom, on the field, in their communities and in life, while providing affordable family oriented entertainment in San Joaquin County. In 2010, the program set a school record for victories and had five players selected in the Major League Baseball Amateur Draft last June.
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