Todd Blyleven Picks Titans; So Does San Diego’s Ahsmuhs

Cal State Fullerton’s baseball and basketball teams have received oral commitments from players who are expected to sign letters of intent April 11.

Todd Blyleven, a Villa Park High School pitcher who is the son of Angel pitcher Bert Blyleven, said he will join the Titan baseball team. Kevin Ahsmuhs, a 6-foot-8 inside player from San Diego Mesa College, said he will join the Titan basketball team.

Blyleven, a 6-4 senior who relies on a fastball, curve and changeup, has a 2-1 record with an 0.50 earned-run average and 27 strikeouts for Villa Park this season.

After spending his first 2 1/2 years of high school at Mater Dei, Blyleven transferred to Villa Park, where he went 4-4 with a 4.00 ERA and 57 strikeouts last season.

Blyleven, who chose Fullerton over Arizona and Kansas State, cited his relationship with Fullerton first-year pitching coach Vern Ruhle, also a former Angel, and the proximity of the school as the primary factors in his decision.

“I’ve known Vern for a long time--he played with my Dad for a few years in Cleveland and he coached me during winter league a few years ago,” Blyleven said. “When Vern got the job, I really looked hard at going to Fullerton. That and being close to home were important.”

Ahsmuhs, a 1988 graduate of San Diego Mission Bay High School, played center last season but considers himself a power forward. He averaged 16 points, 10 rebounds and 3.7 blocked shots a game in helping the Olympians to a 12-17 record.

He was a first-team, All-Pacific Coast Conference and an honorable-mention, all-state selection at Mesa.

Ahsmuhs chose Fullerton over UC Irvine and UC Santa Barbara, mainly, he said, for academic reasons.

“I liked the Big West because it’s an up-and-coming conference,” Ahsmuhs said. “But looking at it education-wise, Fullerton had a marketing major and the UC schools didn’t.”

Ahsmuhs didn’t play organized basketball until his senior year of high school. He said he was 5-10 during his sophomore year but shot up to 6-8 over the next four years.

He missed his freshman season at San Diego Mesa because of a broken foot and plans to petition the Big West Conference and the NCAA in hopes of gaining a third year of eligibility at Fullerton.