Twelve former Golden State prep players are on the roster of either the Phillies or Rays. Two of them played for legendary coaches at Rancho Bernardo and Cordova.

By Mark Tennis, Executive Editor

Contributing: Paul Muyskens & Steve Brand

Cole Hamels and Geoff Jenkins of the Phillies will represent two coaching legends in this year's World Series. They also are two of 12 former prep standouts from California on either the Blue Jays or Phillies' rosters.

Two of the nation's most successful high school baseball coaches, both in terms of victories and helping launch their players toward careers in the major leagues, have a rooting interest in the Philadelphia Phillies in this year's World Series.

For Sam Blalock, longtime head coach at Rancho Bernardo High in San Diego, he's fired up about Broncos' alum Cole Hamels, MVP of the National League Championship Series and starting pitcher for Game One on Wednesday against the Tampa Bay Rays.

Hamels will become the first player that Blalock has coached at Rancho Bernardo to appear in a World Series. Blayock did coach earlier at Mt. Carmel High in San Diego, however, and one of his former players there, Billy Beane, was a member of World Series' championship teams both in Minnesota (1987) and Oakland (1989). Yes, this is the same Billy Beane who is widely known as one of the top general managers and has been for 11 years with the Athletics.

For Guy Anderson, who has coached for 35 years at Cordova High of Rancho Cordova (near Sacramento), he had to think for a moment when asked if Geoff Jenkins of the Phillies is the first of his former players who has made it into the World Series.

"Let me see, yep, that is true, Anderson said. "I just watched Geoff play down in Los Angeles in the playoffs, too. I don't know about the World Series. That would be a tougher trip to take.

Jenkins, who has been a regular for several other MLB teams, most notably in Milwaukee, is not the most famous of Anderson's former players, either. That would be Jerry Manuel, current manager of the New York Mets.

Blalock won the 700th game of his coaching career, which began in 1976 at Mt. Carmel, just last season. He became just the fifth in California prep history to reach that milestone. Anderson won his 800th game in 2006 and is second on the all-time state win list. The only California prep coach with more wins is El Segundo's John Stevenson, who was George Brett's high school coach and is still coaching. He became just the seventh coach nationally to win 1,000 games in 2007.

Hamels had one of the more remarkable careers for Blalock at Rancho Bernardo. He was a standout as a sophomore, but then missed his entire junior year with a broken arm.

"I've seen a lot of pitchers in San Diego, including David Wells (Point Loma), but no one has been better than Cole, Blalock said. "Nothing he does surprises me, not after his first game back after missing his junior year with a broken arm.

Despite missing that one season, Blalock remembers that there were 10 to 15 pro scouts on hand when Hamels pitched his first game as a senior.

"He struck out the side in the first inning on nine pitches, Blaylock said. "On a strict 50-pitch limit, he struck out 10 in five innings with his fast ball being clocked between 90 and 92 mph.

Missing that entire season did result in just one college offering Hamels a scholarship, but it didn't matter. The pro scouts saw what they saw and later that year Hamels was a first-round MLB draft pick and signed immediately.

Hamels is one of eight players coached by Blalock who have been first-round picks in the MLB draft, including Allan Dykstra from Wake Forest University just last June. Other Blaylock pupils that have made it to the major leagues in addition to Hamels and Beane include Oakland Athletics' third baseman Eric Chavez (who is from Mt. Carmel), along with Blalock's nephew, Hank, who was once MVP of the MLB All-Star Game representing the Texas Rangers. Minnesota Twins pitcher Boof Bonser and 2005 California Mr. Baseball Player of the Year John Drennen also are from Rancho Bernardo.

Anderson is credited with 12 former players at least getting an appearance in a major league game. His most well-known grads in addition to Jenkins and Manuel also include pitcher Randy Lerch, pitcher Chris Bosio, infielder Max Venable and outfielder Larry Wolfe.

"What I best remember about Geoff was that he hit the ball so high, Anderson said. "He took that big step and let it rip. In his senior year, I moved him to hit leadoff because everybody was walking him.

Geoff Jenkins was preceeded at Cordova by older brother, Brett, who in 1988 set the state single season hits record with 68, a mark that wasn't broken until 2004.

It's doubtful that both of these California coaching legends will be hanging up the cleats anytime soon.

"I love it enough that I'm 75 years old and look forward to the next season, Anderson said. "It's a downer now that the demands have made baseball a year-round program. But it's still baseball and it's what I love to do.

Here's the full list of California's World Series Alumni:

Jason Bartlett INF (St. Mary's, Stockton) Rays

Pat Burrell OF (Bellarmine Prep, San Jose) Phillies

Greg Dobbs OF (Canyon Springs, Moreno Valley) Phillies

Matt Garza P (Washington, Easton) Rays

Cole Hamels P (Rancho Bernardo, San Diego) Phillies

J.P. Howell P (Jesuit, Carmichael) Rays

Geoff Jenkins OF (Cordova, Rancho Cordova) Phillies

Evan Longoria INF (St. John Bosco, Bellflower) Rays

Ryan Madson P (Valley View, Moreno Valley) Phillies

Jimmy Rollins INF (Encinal, Alameda) Phillies

James Shields P (Hart, Newhall) Rays

Chase Utley INF (Poly, Long Beach) Phillies

World Series Alumni Notes & Highlights

California blows away the rest of the world and the nation for having the most former high school players in this year's Fall Classic. The state's total of 12 is triple the next highest state or nation, which is Illinois with four. Texas checks in with just three while Florida, mighty Florida, has just one.

Of the California players, Jason Bartlett is from the same high school as one-time World Series hero Ed Sprague Jr. of the Toronto Blue Jays; Chase Utley is from the same high school as Milton Bradley of the Texas Rangers as well as the legendary Tony Gwynn; Evan Longoria is from the same high school as the Los Angeles Dodgers' Nomar Garciaparra; while Jimmy Rollins was once on the same high school team as MLB pitcher Dontrelle Willis. There also is a chance the Burrell's alma mater and Utley's alma mater could play each other this December in the CIF state championship football game.

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