Irvine Proudly Christens Its New Stadium
It’s no secret in the baseball community that South Orange County annually produces an abundance of top high school and college players.
On Friday night at UC Irvine, it was evident that the area does not lack for college baseball fans as well. A sellout crowd of 3,083 packed renovated Anteater Ballpark for Irvine’s first game in almost 10 years. As this edition went to press, the Anteaters were trailing San Diego, 8-5, in the bottom of the eighth inning.
“It’s a great feeling to see this kind of turnout,” Irvine Athletic Director Dan Guerrero said. “We’ve been waiting for this day for a long time.”
Irvine dropped its program after the 1992 season because of budget cuts. Seven months later, Guerrero, a former baseball player at UCLA, was hired as athletic director and began working to bring the sport back. In 1999 Irvine students voted to increase fees for athletic funding so baseball and other sports could be reinstated.
Jordan Corpuz, a freshman from Oxnard, was among the spectators who arrived 90 minutes before Friday’s game to stake out a spot on the grassy knoll that runs the length of the right-field line.
“Having a baseball team brings back enthusiasm and togetherness,” Corpuz said. “I like going to the basketball games here, and this gives students another activity to get involved in.”
As Irvine players watched San Diego take batting practice, freshman infielder-pitcher Matt Anderson said the Anteaters were eager to get the season--and their Division I careers--started. “This is the first D-I game for everyone on the team, so I think the first few innings we’ll be getting the butterflies out,” Anderson said.
The stadium, built on the site of Irvine’s old baseball field, cost $3.9 million. It features 900 permanent seats, major league-quality dugouts and a state-of-the-art scoreboard with a full-color video screen, the only one of its kind at a college baseball venue on the West Coast. The second phase of construction, pending more fund-raising, will include expanded seating, a permanent press box and a clubhouse behind the third-base dugout, Guerrero said.
“We built it as a place to host [NCAA] regionals,” said Irvine Coach John Savage, who was hired in July 2000 and has been involved in almost every aspect of the program’s resurrection. Guerrero said that 300 season tickets and 100 seat options have been sold.
Those in professional baseball were impressed with opening night--and happy to have another first-rate facility to find talent.
“This gives us another place to be on a Friday or Saturday night,” said Joe Butler, a West Coast scout for the Chicago White Sox. “It allows scouts to see high school games in the area in the daytime and a college game at night.”
Agent Scott Boras, who lives in the Newport Coast area of Newport Beach, said he is especially pleased with the stadium’s location. “It’s wonderful because our office is just around the corner,” Boras said. “It’s an extra place to see college baseball and the program is going to be one of the top programs in the nation.”
