49ers’ Day Back on Familiar Ground

Paul Day has been there and back, and now he’s there again.

Day was a standout shortstop at Capistrano Valley High three years ago, but he wound up patrolling the outfield for Saddleback College after being told there was no room for him in the infield at Long Beach State.

Day made the best of his situation, setting two Saddleback hitting records and earning all-state honors in 1996. This time, he got the 49ers’ attention, and Long Beach State Coach Dave Snow signed him.

Day made 56 starts in the 49ers’ outfield last season, committing only two errors and earning All-Big West Conference honors. So why is he on the move again, this time to third base?

Necessity.

Long Beach is in a rebuilding season. Though the 49ers have advanced to the NCAA tournament eight of the past nine seasons and Snow has averaged 41 victories per season, seven players--more than any other college--signed pro contracts at the end of last year. Snow had to replace his entire infield and top four pitchers.

So Day returning to the infield seemed a natural fit.

“We thought we might work him out there and it has turned out better than we thought,” said Mike Weathers, the 49ers’ infield coach. “Our outfield was really our strength. We had four guys there and Paul was the one who we figured to bring into the infield.

“He’s taken to it. He didn’t shy away from it, although maybe he didn’t want to do it. It’s been a good challenge for him and he’s done a real good job.”

From Day 1, Day wanted to play for Long Beach State. His father, Gary, works at Boeing’s airplane assembly plant in Long Beach and is able to watch most of his home games.

Paul was a four-year varsity player at Capistrano Valley. He was twice selected All-South Coast League at shortstop. In 1995, his senior year, he was voted the South’s most valuable player at the Orange County and state high school all-star games.

But Long Beach had an abundance of infielders, so Day enrolled at Saddleback, where he set school records by hitting in 19 consecutive games and getting 78 hits in a season. His batting average was .397.

Last season for Long Beach, Day hit .348 with 42 runs batted in.

He said the biggest adjustment he’s had to make at third base, so far, is getting used to the speed at which balls travel down the line.

“Those balls really get on you in a hurry,” he said. “Especially with aluminum bats, they get down the line fast. Guys are lifting weights and getting stronger too, and they really hit the ball.”

Snow said Day’s return to the infield may take some pressure off him in the long run and let him do what he does best at the plate--make contact. Day had a slugging percentage of .502, second-best among regulars last season, while striking out only 15% of the time.

“When he’s swinging the bat real well, he’ll use all fields,” Snow said. “He has good plate coverage and can hit breaking balls and lots of different pitches.”

But it may take time for teammates to get used to seeing him in the infield.

“It was kind of difficult to see him there for the first couple of weeks,” said 49er right fielder Chuck Lopez. “We were very used to playing next to each other.”

Through the 49ers’ first eight games of the season--they’re 2-6 with Saturday’s game against Tulane halted by rain--Day has hit safely in each, is batting .486 with 17 hits, seven runs scored, one home run and six RBIs.

“We have many new faces and Paul Day is one of the few guys we got back with Division I experience,” Snow said. “He’s had success at this level, particularly in the latter part of the 1997 season, and he figures to be one of our key guys this season.”

In Friday’s 14-6 victory over Tulane, Day had three hits and scored twice.

Intense, somewhat moody, Day often got down on himself when things weren’t going right last year, Snow said.

“That’s the biggest obstacle young players face,” Snow said. “It’s learning to deal with setbacks. But at the same time Paul has a lot of self-confidence and that works for him. He just needs to learn how to balance it.”

Lopez said that, in the past, Day has led in quiet ways, but he will be looked on to lead the team with more emotion this season.

“He’s not a big talker,” Lopez said. “He shows you by example. But he says what he has to, like in team meetings he brings up good points and has his own opinion about things.”

Day sees his role as helping the coaching staff teach the 21 new ballplayers the ropes.

“My role this year is to help guide the team,” he said. “There’s only a few of us who have played at this level, so I’ve got to really lead this year.”