North-South All-Star Baseball : Saunders Helps Lead South to a 6-5 Victory

Kids with dreams of reaching the highest levels of baseball gave it the old major league try Friday night, and as is often the case in high school all-star games, that meant giving the fans a little bit of everything.

The California North-South All-Star series opened its three-game run at Smith Field and offered three passed balls, three wild pitches, seven errors and even a batter who reached first base on a fielder’s choice after striking out.

If you haven’t seen that one before, try remembering the last time you saw somebody try to score from first on a popup to the second baseman--and not make it.

As fun as it was, it was also even, right up to the ninth inning, when the South won, 6-5, on--ready?--a two-foot RBI single by La Mirada High catcher Eric Brooks.

Brooks’ winning hit, a chopper in front of the plate that was fielded by North catcher Mike Harrison, scored Esperanza’s Doug Saunders from third.

Saunders, who earlier had three hits and drove in three runs, slid around the tag as Harrison turned around too late.

Saunders drove in a run with a single during a two-run fifth and put the South ahead, 5-4, on a two-run double in the sixth.

In the top of the ninth with teh score tied, 5-5, Lawrence was on first with two outs when Damon Mashore of Concord High in Clayton Valley lofted a popup to Saunders at second. Saunders wavered under the ball and dropped it, and it rolled toward shortstop Randy Graves of Riverside Poly.

Lawrence, running on the play, tried to score, but Graves’ throw beat him to the plate.