Former Dirtbag Jeremy Reed was called up to the Seattle Mariners on Tuesday. Reed grounded out in his first major league at-bat Wednesday night. Birmingham Barons

 

Major league baseball welcomes two more former Dirtbags

By Claire Howie
Online Forty-Niner
Staff Writer

Jeremy Reed and Greg Dobbs became the fourth and fifth former Long Beach State baseball players to make their major league debut in 2004 on Tuesday. The duo was called up to join the Seattle Mariners from Triple-A Tacoma.

Reed and Dobbs made their debut in Wednesday night's game against the Cleveland Indians. Both came in as pinch hitters in the ninth inning. Dobbs smashed a homer in his first at-bat, becoming the first Mariner in history to accomplish the feat. Reed pinch hit, and grounded out in his first at-bat.

Tuesday's call up followed Reed's move in June from the White Sox to the Mariners as part of the Freddy Garcia trade. While playing for Tacoma, Reed batted .305 in 61 games with 40 runs, eight of which were home runs, and 36 RBIs. His record during the 2003 season earned him the Sports Weekly and Topps Baseball Minor Leaguer of the Year. Overall during his minor league career, Reed batted .328 with 206 runs, 27 home runs and 195 RBIs.

"I don't know much about him," Mariner Manager Bob Melvin said to MLB.com. "I know that he hit over .300 and got some stolen bases, as well. He's a very good left-handed hitter and we'll see if he can play some center field. I'm very excited about seeing him. This is one of the best minor league hitting prospects in all the minor leagues, so I'm excited to see what he can do here."

Dobbs, a member of the Dirtbags in 1999, batted .271 with 44 runs, 36 RBIs and eight home runs for Tacoma, boosting his career batting average to .325.

Twenty-four former members of the Dirtbags have been listed on a major league roster, 12 of which are currently sporting a major league jersey.

Major leaguers from Long Beach State have acquired some impressive numbers over the years. In their collective major league careers, former Dirtbags have totaled 1,679 RBIs, 415 homers and 1,578 runs. The 11 major league pitchers hailing from Long Beach State have a combined strike out total of 2,550.

Thirty-one Dirtbag alumni are playing professional baseball in the minor leagues this season. In 2004 alone, these 31 players have totaled 691 RBIs, 827 runs, 97 homers and pitchers have had 797 strikeouts.

So why are so many former Dirtbags making the major leagues?

Maybe it is in the Dirtbag motto.

"A Dirtbag is a style of playing the game of baseball," Mike Gallo Said, a former Dirtbag pitcher now playing for the Houston Astros. "It is the type of player every team needs Loves to play the game everyday. He maybe does not have all the skills of the greatest player, but his attitude and the way he commits himself to the game is what makes this Dirtbag great. Dealing with adversity is what completes being a Dirtbag. A team player at all times (hardnosed)."