THURSDAY, MAY 13, 1999

Beach recruits hit big

By Arnold V. Cruz

On-Line Forty-Niner

When 49er baseball coach Dave Snow recruited junior first baseman Jaeme Leal and junior third baseman Greg Dobbs he didn't have to look far.

Leal, a former Riverside Poly High standout, was a two-time junior college All-American and first team All-Orange Empire League pick for coach Dennis Rogers at Riverside Community College. Leal was voted league MVP in 1998 as a sophomore, batting .320 with 24 homers and 84 RBIs.

Dobbs, a former Moreno Valley Canyon Springs High star, was also selected junior college All-American twice and was a two-time first team All-Orange Empire Conference pick. He was selected first team junior college All-Southern California under Rogers in 1998.

When Leal and Dobbs decided to play baseball at Long Beach State, the 49ers arguably landed two of the top prospects in the nation.

"I was really pleased with their decision to come here," Snow said. "They were a couple of guys that I really liked and they filled a couple of big needs."

Dobbs, hitting a team-high .380, also has a team-leading 70 hits with seven homers and 52 RBIs. Leal, second on the team with a .372 batting average, leads the 49ers with 19 bombs and 67 RBIs.

And lately, Dobbs and Leal have been just as hot for the 49ers.

Dobbs has a five-game hitting streak, batting .429 (9-21) with four runs scored and five RBIs. He has put back-to-back three-hit outings and has tied Leal for the team lead with 23 multiple-hit games.

Though Dobbs has been on a hitting tear, he said he feels pitching is tough at the Division I level.

"The biggest difference between junior college baseball and Division I baseball is the consistency of good starting pitchers we see [at Division I]," Dobbs said.

"There is better pitching overall and I just worked hard on my swing," he said. "Working on getting my hands quicker has helped a lot."

Leal has hit .556 (10-18) in his last five games with two homers, five runs scored and seven RBIs. Leal has also performed well on the field with his .995 fielding percentage, committing just two errors in 404 chances.

"I was getting myself out," Leal said. "I just need to put the ball in play."

Recruited heavily by USC, Arizona State, Alabama, Arkansas and many other top-ranked colleges, Dobbs said he chose Long Beach State because of the coaching staff.

"Coach Snow is heralded as one of the best coaches in the nation," Dobbs said.

"Once I met some of the guys and realized they worked hard for everything, after that first team meeting I knew I made the right decision to come here," he said.

Leal was highly recruited by Oklahoma, Arizona State, and Arkansas among others.

However, when Leal saw players like Terrmel Sledge and Mike Gallo play during a visit, "I liked the way the guys got at it. And coach Snow really teaches the game well."

When asked about turning pro, Dobbs said, "I honestly don't know right now," Dobbs said. "Either way it's a win-win situation. I would have no problem with coming back for my senior year."

"I don't know," Leal said. "Its [playing pro] always been one of my dreams."

"Selfishly, I'd like them to come back," Snow said.