The Orange County All-Star Baseball Game, first played in 1968, was in danger of not being played this year and perhaps never again.
The Kiwanis Club of Greater Anaheim had organized and managed the game since ‘68 but did not have the manpower to do it this year.
The Ryan Lemmon Foundation stepped forward and assumed the responsibilities of keeping the game going, starting with Wednesday’s game at Great Park in Irvine.
Guy Lemmon is the chief officer of The Ryan Lemmon Foundation that is named for his late son, who was an All-Orange County baseball player at Woodbridge High in 1993 and died in a car accident in 1994.
Guy Lemmon said it was natural for the foundation to keep the game going.
“It’s basically about honoring all that is baseball in Orange County,” Lemmon said. “We want to see it continue. It’s neat to be able to honor these players, and Orange County for so long has been a hotbed for baseball talent.”
The county all-star baseball game, which is for graduating seniors, has been played every year since ‘68, except for the pandemic season of 2020.
This is the first year the game is being played at Great Park after being played at Glover Stadium for many years.
Among the players who have played in the game are Hall Of Fame inductees Bert Blyleven (Santiago High School) and Gary Carter (Sunny Hills). Current MLB players who played in the game include Griffin Canning (Santa Margarita) and Patrick Sandoval (Mission Viejo) of the Angels and Freddie Freeman (El Modena) of the Dodgers.
League MVPs and all-league players are all over the North and South rosters.
Derek Curiel (4) of Orange Lutheran bunts for a single advancing Ben Reiland (11) to second base in a game against Corona in the championship game of the PBR Spring Invitational at Hart Park in Orange on Friday, March 8, 2024. The Lancers play in the National High School Invitational this week. (Photo by Leonard Ortiz, Orange County Register/SCNG)
This year’s North roster includes Orange Lutheran outfielder Derek Curiel, who is projected to be an early-round selection in the MLB Draft in July. He signed with LSU.
Cypress catcher/first baseman Nick Montgomery, who signed with Arizona State and was an Empire League MVP, is on the North squad. The North’s Jared Day of La Habra and Manny Rivera of Buena Park were Freeway League pitchers of the year.
Crestview League MVP Nick Santivanez of El Modena and North Hills League MVP Austin Duarte of Canyon are on the North team.
The South’s Zach Ireland of Beckman pitched seven innings with no earned runs allowed in the Patriots 2-1 win over St. John Bosco in the CIF Southern Section Division 3 championship game May 18.
Also on the South roster are Keenan Anzai of Mission Viejo and Owen Faust of Tesoro, who were South Coast League co-MVPs, and Surf League pitcher of the year Cayden Bonura of Fountain Valley.
Some players who are on the North and South rosters will be unable to play because their high school teams are playing in the CIF Southern California Regional playoffs that started Tuesday.
After batting practice and infield, which are open to the public, Wednesday’s pregame ceremonies begin at 6:30 p.m. followed by the nine-inning game. The Kiwanis Club of Greater Anaheim, including longtime game chairman Joe Dale, will be honored before the game for their long commitment to the game.
Admission is $15, payable by cash or Venmo. Parking adjacent to Great Park’s baseball stadium is free.
The game will be streamed live by iPost Sports and will be available there for the following two months.
“There have been 160 big-leaguers who have played in this game,” Lemmon said. “We want this game to be the stepping stone for the next 160 big-leaguers who will have played in this game.”
The player rosters and coaches:
NORTH ROSTER
Coach: Josh Kliner, El Modena. Assistant coaches: Rich Pohle, Brea Olinda; Joe Secoda, Valencia. Players: Logan Asch, El Modena, Inf; Jake Evans, Los Alamitos, Inf; Aaron Sambath, Villa Park, P/Inf; Derek Curiel, Orange Lutheran, OF; Jared Day, La Habra, P; Matthew Futami, Pacifica, P; Manny Rivera, Buena Park, P; Ross Clark, Orange Lutheran, P; Aiden Marquez, Pacifica, Inf; Austin Duarte, Canyon, P/OF; Nick Santivanez, El Modena, P/Inf; Andrew Olsen, Tustin, OF; Jacob Talbott, Yorba Linda, 1B; Justin Tillar, Cypress, 1B/OF; AJ Cappell, Los Alamitos, Inf; Caden Maloof, Yorba Linda, C; Landon Martin, Sonora, P; Caden Maloof, Yorba Linda, C; Cohen Gomez, Canyon, P/1B; Garrett Davidson, Foothill, P/OF; Noah Macalino, Foothill, C; Nick Montgomery, Cypress, C/1B; Damian Roldan, Santa Ana Valley, Inf; Justin Tims, Villa Park, P; Luke Wilson, Servite, OF; Travis Maxwell, El Dorado, P; Brian Harbor, Foothill, P/1B
SOUTH ROSTER
Coach: Jake Haney, Crean Lutheran. Assistant coaches: Tom Faris, Dana Hills; Ryan Brucker, Woodbridge. Players: Zachary Doyle, San Juan Hills, OF; Sho Garcia, Crean Lutheran, Inf; Tyler Holland, Mission Viejo, Inf; Charlie Caruso, JSerra, C; Austin Plisinki, San Juan Hills, P; Keenan Anzai, Mission Viejo, P; Anthony DeMarco, Woodbridge, C; Casey Euper, Northwood, P; Zach Ireland, Beckman, P; Dominic Viglione, Newport Harbor, P; Kenji Gonzales, Trabuco Hills, P; Noah Neufeld, Laguna Beach, P; Owen Faust, Tesoro, Inf; John Uchytil, Estancia, OF; Brody Connors, Mater Dei, Inf; Grady Faris, Dana Hills, P; Andrew Johnson, Capistrano Valley Christian, P; Jackson Haney, Crean Lutheran, C; Wylan Moss, Mater Dei, P; Nathan Aceves, Huntington Beach, P; Logan deGroot, Santa Margarita, OF; Peyton Perry, Ocean View, OF; Luke Weston, University, Inf; Cayden Bonura, Fountain Valley, P; Carter Danz, Corona del Mar, 1B
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