USA – The National League West Division Champion Los Angeles Dodgers will host the Third Annual High School Baseball Coaches Reception tonight in the Stadium Club at Dodger Stadium. The Dodgers, along with the California Interscholastic Federation (C.I.F.) and Farmers Insurance, will honor Tom Meusborn of Chatsworth High School (C.I.F. City Section) and Scott Muckey of Crespi Carmelite High School (C.I.F. Division III, Southern Section) with the Tommy Lasorda Lifetime Achievement Award, designating them as the most outstanding high school baseball coaches in Southern California. The reception starts at 6 p.m. PT.

“I have always been very proud of baseball coaches at the high school level,” said Special Advisor to the Chairman and Hall of Fame Manager Tommy Lasorda. “They do it because they love it, and they teach their young men to get a good education and to get along well with others. Those skills they learn in baseball will serve them throughout their lives.”

Dodger Minor League Field Coordinator Mike Brumley will speak at the event. Brumley spent eight seasons in the major leagues, playing for the Chicago Cubs (1987), Detroit Tigers (1989), Seattle Mariners (1990), Boston Red Sox (1991-1992), Houston Astros (1993, 1995), and Oakland Athletics (1994). Last year he led the Rookie Level Ogden Raptors into the playoffs with a record of 23-14.

Louisiana State University Athletic Director and former LSU baseball coach “Skip” Bertman will speak as well. Bertman is a member of the College Baseball Hall of Fame, the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame, and the American Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Fame. During his coaching career, Bertman won five National Championships, seven SEC Championships, and earned National Coach of the Year honors six times. He owns a career record of 870-330-3 (.724).

The Dodgers will also recognize coach Danny Maye of Royal High School in Simi Valley, California. Maye has led the Highlanders to 13 CIF postseason appearances and five Marmonte League Championships.

He was name the Los Angeles Times Coach of the Year in 1995 and ‘96, the Daily News Coach of the Year in 1990 and ‘98, and has won the Marmonte League Coach of the Year five times. His team was nationally ranked in both 1996 (#9) and 2005 (#19). Maye also coached Dodger prospect Matt McGill (RHP), who was drafted by the Dodgers in the 2008 first-year player draft. Maye and McGill will be on hand tonight, as will Chuck Crim, the scout who signed McGill.

Meusborn enters his 20th season as head coach of the Chancellors. He has guided his ball club to an amazing two national titles, seven City Section titles, and 16 West Valley League titles. Under Meusborn, Chatsworth has played at Dodger Stadium in the C.I.F. championship game 12 times, winning seven of them.

Besides being selected national champions by three publications each in 2003 and ‘04, his teams have been nationally ranked by different publications in 1990 and 1998-2006. The 2003 team finished 33-1 and the ‘04 team finished 35-0 for a two-year record of 68-1, the best in the history of California prep baseball for a team playing 20 games or more over a two-year span. Those two seasons and the early part of the ‘06 season yielded a state-record 54-game winning streak.

Meusborn’s honors include being named National Coach of the Year by USA Today in 2003 and by the National High School Coaches Association in 2004, the California Coaches Association Coach of the Year in 2002, the Cal-Hi Sports Coach of the Year in 2001, the National High School Baseball Coaches Association Region 8 Coach of the Year in 2000, the Los Angeles Times Coach of the Year in 2000, ‘01, and ‘04, the Los Angeles City Coach of the Year in 1990, and the “Pinnacle of Success” Coach of the Year in 1990.
Muckey, in his 23rd season as head coach of the Celts, led Crespi to win its first ever C.I.F. Division III Championship in 2003 by defeating Harvard-Westlake at Angel Stadium. In 2004, the Celts finished as runner-ups in C.I.F. Division III finals, City Section with a close loss to Katella at Dodger Stadium.

Farmers is proud to be a sponsor of both the Los Angeles Dodgers and the C.I.F.,” said Faye W. McClure, Vice President of Strategic Marketing for Farmers Insurance Group, Inc®.

“High schoolers who play, or have played baseball in high school, will attest that their coach served as a mentor who guides them with a steady hand through their high school years. Their coaches build character, integrity, and a competitive spirit in players that helps prepare them for a successful, productive adult life. Farmers is pleased to sponsor this reception honoring the coaches.

Farmers continues to produce educational materials and programs addressing issues that are important to students from all backgrounds. Partnering with the Dodgers and the CIF is an extension of Farmers’ commitment to teenagers and their local communities throughout the great state of California.”

Source: MLB.com

Tags: Coaches