Baseball Tryout Camp Slated

So you think you can play professional baseball, huh? The El Toro-based Major League Scouting Bureau wants to find out.

The bureau will conduct its annual tryout camp for players 16 to 25 on Wednesday at Loyola Marymount University’s George Page Stadium. Participation is limited to players who have not been drafted, and American Legion players are required to bring letters from their coaches.

Scouts from most major league clubs will observe the tryout with the hope of signing yet-to-be-noticed talent. Of the 400-odd athletes who tried out last year at UCLA and Orange Coast College, about five signed pro contracts, according to the bureau.

“Everyone wants a contract,” said bureau-representative Dick Cole, a former scout, “and everyone thinks they can get one. That’s the way to be.”

Cole said the bureau, which will run another tryout June 24-25 at Orange Coast College, scheduled the tryout next week in an effort to sign players in time for the opening of Rookie League play next weekend. Most players who sign will be assigned to such minor leagues. There are four.

Professional baseball rules specify that only high school graduates, junior college players and students of four-year colleges who are at least 21 years old or have junior class status may sign pro contracts.

However, the tryout camps--50 to 100 are held around the country June 15 through July 5--also provide a chance for freshmen and sophomores from high schools and colleges to interest scouts for future consideration.