Baseball : HIT FOR ALL SEASONS : Herman Gets Even Hotter for Metro League All-Stars

Above all, Frank Herman didn’t want to lose any ground this summer.

Herman had started in center field last season for Golden West College. This summer, he played for the Huntington Beach Rustlers in the Metropolitan League, a summer team coached by Bert Villarreal, Golden West coach.

Because he was a starter last spring, Herman played the first five or six innings of each Metro game, then was replaced by someone trying to take his job at Golden West.

But judging by his performance, there appears little chance of that happening.

Herman, 19, had 20 hits in 40 at-bats in the Metro League and at least one hit in all but one of Huntington Beach’s 18 games. He went two for three in his final game to secure the lofty average, the highest full-season mark anyone can remember in the league.

“I had the greatest time of my baseball life,” Herman said. “I never really thought I would hit this well, but each week Coach (Villarreal) would have the averages up to date, and I was always doing pretty well.”

Herman had no idea he was capable of hitting .500 against college-caliber pitching. He also had no idea his accomplishments would land him in center field Sunday afternoon at Anaheim Stadium. Herman and his Metro League all-star teammates will play the league champion Long Beach 49ers after the Angels’ 1:05 game against Oakland.

“It was always a dream to play a game in a major league ballpark,” Herman said. “I had no idea we even had the chance to until my dad was looking through the league program about halfway through the season and saw it (the all-star game) listed. It was just another reason to work harder.”

Herman had three doubles, two triples, two home runs and 15 RBIs this summer and struck out only twice. Herman’s season highlight was a ninth-inning grand slam that gave Huntington Beach a 5-2 victory over the Fullerton Blues early in July. It was his first grand slam in any level of organized baseball.

“I wish I could remember every step, but it all went by so quickly that it’s hard to recall,” Herman said.

Herman missed his sophomore season at Estancia High School after breaking his right leg in a motor-scooter accident. But he played two varsity seasons at Estancia. Herman hit .444 as a senior, was an All-Sea View League pick and started in center field for the south team in the 1988 Orange County high school all-star game.

At Golden West, Herman started the season hitting toward the bottom of the lineup, but by the middle of the season worked his way to the leadoff spot.

“He just kept getting better as the season went along,” Villarreal said. “Then this summer it was incredible. Game in and game out he would hit the ball hard all the time. He also made a lot of improvements in his defense. He worked just as hard on that.”

Herman hit .328, scored 32 runs, had eight doubles and four triples for Golden West, which finished fourth in the Orange Empire Conference last season.

Herman started lifting weights after breaking his leg, and has continued long after the leg healed.

“He started to see the light at the end of the tunnel so he picked it (weightlifting) up a notch,” Villarreal said. “He has a chance to get his education paid for from baseball and that’s important to him.”

Herman’s success earned him a chance at a scholarship to Cal State Fullerton, but he was a unit short of being able to transfer. So he decided to stay at Golden West for his sophomore season.

“It wouldn’t hurt to stay and play another year at Golden West,” Herman said. “It might be better for me.”

Notes

The Long Beach 49ers won the league title with a 15-2-1 record. The Pomona Colts were second with a 14-4 mark. The Huntington Beach Rustlers (10-8) were third and the Fullerton Blues (7-11) fourth. . . . Mike Lujan (.325) and Mark Rasmussen (.356), both members of the 1987 Orange Coast team, played for Long Beach this summer. Willie Navarrette (3-1), from Rancho Santiago, also pitched for Long Beach. . . . Bert Villarreal, Bill Young, Shane Flores and Mark McLaughlin will coach the all-stars, and Dave Malpass will coach Long Beach. All-star Jim Short, who played at Cypress College last spring, played for the Fullerton Blues this summer. He plans to transfer to Fullerton College in the fall. Golden West placed the most players on the all-star team with seven. Fullerton had five and the Cypress Dawgs had two. . . . The game is scheduled to start about 15 to 30 minutes after the Angel game ends. Fans also can attend only the all-star game.