Cypress Dawgs to Face Rest of Metro League in All-Star Game Sunday

The 25th annual Metropolitan League Champion-All Star game matches the Cypress Dawgs against the best players from the other six teams in the league Sunday after the Angels’ 1:05 p.m. game with Cleveland at Anaheim Stadium.

Normally, the game is played two weeks later, but a scheduling conflict at Anaheim Stadium forced it to be moved up.

Cypress (15-5) has a comfortable lead over the second-place Costa Mesa Guards (11-6), thus earning the right to play the all-stars for the second time in three years.

“We decided to go with the team that was in first as of Wednesday, no matter what happens afterwards,” said league president Ernie Elgas. The season will end in two weeks as usual.

Cypress is coached by Scott Pickler, who also coaches at Cypress College. The Dawgs are led by infielders Troy Babbitt and Doug McConathy, both are hitting more than .400. Each was an all-Orange Empire Conference pick last spring for Cypress College.

The all stars will be coached by Jim Kale who heads the Guards. The Metro League All-Stars play an all-star team from the Southern California College Baseball Assn. Saturday at 6 p.m. at UC Irvine as well as Cypress Sunday.

Here is the league all-star team, which was announced Wednesday:

Infielders: Chris Johnson (Fullerton Blues), Curt Miltonburger and Shannon Wright (Pomona Colts), Mike Alto, Ray Cervantes, and Curt Collicott (Riverside Cats), Keith Laszlo and Matt Dahlgran (Costa Mesa Guards), Brian Walker and Eric Schreifels (Saddleback Cowboys), Gerad Cawhorn (Huntington Beach Rustlers).

Outfielders: Ed Garcia and Dave Moore (Fullerton), Randy Curtis (Riverside), James Johnson (Huntington Beach), Doug Rystrom (Costa Mesa), Buster Nietzke (Saddleback).

Pitchers: Jim Burchit (Fullerton), Ben Blomdahl (Riverside), Jeff Henderson (Huntington Beach), Brett Johnson (Costa Mesa), Pat Norville (Saddleback).