Annual Galvan Alumni Classic to bring SBHS players together,
both young and old
A replica of P.J. Galvan’s No. 15 jersey hangs in right field at
San Benito High School, never to be worn again. It’s a small
reminder of the player Galvan was, and the game he was synonymous
with.
Annual Galvan Alumni Classic to bring SBHS players together, both young and old
A replica of P.J. Galvan’s No. 15 jersey hangs in right field at San Benito High School, never to be worn again. It’s a small reminder of the player Galvan was, and the game he was synonymous with.
“He was a hustler. He never showed weakness or fatigue,” Nick Gonzales said last year. An SBHS grad of 2004, Gonzales played with Galvan from his Little League days through high school.
“His attitude was incredible,” Gonzales added. “We could have been down 20-1 and he would have been playing like it was a one-run ball game.”
And players both young and old usually play with that same zeal as Galvan would have at the fundraising event in his name – the P.J. Galvan Alumni Classic. The former SBHS third baseman was killed in a car accident in 2003, and each year since a game is played in his honor between the current varsity baseball team and a handful of San Benito alumni.
Now in its sixth year, the Alumni Classic will take place on Saturday at the Babe Ruth fields at Veterans Memorial Park in Hollister. A home-run derby is slated for 4:30 p.m., and is limited to the first 15 entrants, while the alumni game will start at 6 p.m.
“The memory of my friend,” said Nick Ramos, Class of 2004, when asked why he’s playing on Saturday. “It was always good to be on the field with him. It’s the memory of him and the love of the game we both shared.
“It kind of brings us together.”
Born just two days apart, Ramos and Galvan played together through Little League and All-Stars, and eventually made up the left side of the infield for San Benito. Ramos was a shortstop.
“I was really close to him through high school, ever since preschool,” Ramos said. “We just grew up together.”
Former players expected to be in attendance include Gonzales, Ramos, Nick Bakich, Dave Ortiz, Lou Urbina, Andrew Barragan, Kolten Klauer, Breyon Canez, Miles Sanchez, Eric Diaz, Justin Andrade, Anthony Synegal and Dave Padilla.
“Anyone who was associated with P.J. talks a lot about him and how much love he had for the game,” said SBHS manager Michael Luna, who coaches the varsity squad at the Alumni Classic. Although he didn’t coach Galvan, the support Luna sees each year is enough of a sign – Galvan had a passion for the game.
“It tells me how much pride they have in the community and the game as well to come out in support of P.J.,” Luna said.
Cost to play for former players is $25, and includes a T-shirt, while gate admission is $5 for adults and $3 for children 12 and under.
Little League players are admitted for free with a parent, and will receive a free hot dog as well as be entered into a raffle to win an authentic Baler baseball jersey.
Proceeds benefit the SBHS baseball program, as well as the team’s baseball scholarship fund.
This year’s scholarship recipients were Ramiro Chapa and Kyle Zozaya.
Anthony Synegal, an SBHS grad of 2004 who recently played in the NCAA Division I Regionals with Gonzaga University, played his sophomore and junior seasons at San Benito with Galvan.
“It’s pretty important to me and it’s important for his family to see his buddies come out in support,” Synegal said. The former Baler catcher actually lives in Spokane, Wash., and was in Hollister for his brother’s high school graduation.
Once he heard the P.J. Galvan Alumni Classic was scheduled for Saturday, he pushed his flight home back until Monday.
“He always enjoyed the time he was out on the field,” Synegal said. “He was a competitor and just overall a great teammate.
“It’s a great cause for a person who definitely showed what it takes to be a competitor on an off the field. It’s important for everybody and I know it’d be huge for P.J.”
For more information about the P.J. Galvan Alumni Classic, contact Kelly Sepulveda at 408-804-3111.
