Last Chance at Glory for Shortstop Anderson : Baseball: There’s a lot of sentiment at the College World Series for the retiring University of Miami coach, but the Palos Verdes player says, ‘Deep down, we want to win it for ourselves.’

The 1992 College World Series will mark the end of Miami Coach Ron Fraser’s 30-year career with the two-time national champion Hurricanes.

Fraser, with his success and flair for promotion, has done more than anyone to increase the popularity of college baseball.

Because of Fraser’s influence, top-ranked Miami has been the sentimental favorite this year in its 12th College World Series appearance.

But Miami shortstop Chris Anderson says Hurricane players are not getting caught up in any “Win One for the Gipper” scenarios.

“We haven’t paid too much attention to what’s going on with that kind of stuff,” said Anderson, who graduated in 1987 from what was then Palos Verdes High. “None of the players on this team have been this close to a national championship. Deep down, we want to win it for ourselves.”

Miami plays Cal State Fullerton today for the right to advance to Saturday’s championship game against Pepperdine.

Anderson, 22, is a fifth-year senior who started 22 of the Hurricanes’ 64 games this season. He entered the College World Series batting .272 and has been used mainly as a pinch-hitter and defensive replacement in Miami’s first three games.

“This has been a different experience,” Anderson said of the College World Series. “I mean, we get a lot of people who come out and watch college baseball at Miami. Something like 2,500 a game. But here, with 19,000 focusing down on you, it’s kind of neat.”

The 6-foot, 180-pound Anderson is the son of Dick Anderson, a former All-Pro defensive back for the Miami Dolphins. Greg played only one year of varsity baseball at Palos Verdes after moving to the area from San Diego in the middle of his junior year. He batted .329 and said he chose Miami over USC.

Anderson played in 24 games as a freshman and batted .278. He red-shirted in 1988, then played as a reserve the next year, batting .356 in 22 games.

Last season, Anderson became the Hurricanes’ starting shortstop. He batted .301, hit three home runs and drove in 42 runs.

“I was pretty confident coming into this season, but I had a bad streak near the start and lost my job,” Anderson said. “Now I’m just trying to help us win by doing whatever we need.”

Anderson graduated in May with a degree in finance. He plans to pursue a career in the investment field.

Anderson has no regrets about his decision to attend a school that is attempting to win its first national title since 1985.

“There’s something about playing in this program that really gets to you,” Anderson said. “I’ve really enjoyed being a part of it. We’ve had a lot of great players and teams. To go out with a World Series ring would be a great way to end it.”