Legion all-star game tonight

Call it the calm before the storm.

Less than two weeks before the American Legion season heats up with the state tournament, the best young players in Southern Nevada will get together tonight for the annual all-star event at UNLV's Wilson Stadium.

The festivities begin with the junior varsity contest, which will be followed by the skills events -- the base running derby, hot hands relay and the home run derby. The varsity game is set to begin at 8 p.m.

Coach Tim Chambers of Gorman will head up the West squad against Silverado's Art Besser, who will coach the Eastern stars.

Both coaches said their primary goal is to play everyone on their rosters. But Chambers and Besser admit they're competitors when they step onto the field.

"You always want to win any time you play," said Chambers, who will likely send Cimarron-Memorial right-hander Mike Esposito to the mound as his starting pitcher.

"It's kind of a fun thing, but we want to come out and win," said Besser, who said he hasn't decided on a starter.

League-leading Durango (51-19, 19-1 league) will lead the West squad with five participants: pitcher Scott Yahruas, infielder Matt McCurdy, designated hitter Jack Newark, outfielder James Burgess and Mark Weiesenmiller.

The West also will have four players from Bishop Gorman (36-10, 17-5), including 1998 Southern Zone Player of the Year Jason Van Meetren. Western, Cimarron-Memorial, Cheyenne and Palo Verde each will be represented by three players.

Silverado (30-13, 16-5), which sits in third place in the standings, has five players on the East roster: catcher Tommy Rojas, pitcher Jason Vita, infielders Joe Wickman and Ryan Ruiz and outfielder Vincent Valiente.

Tickets are $2 for adults and $1 for children and are available at the door.

Quick response

In the wake of an ugly incident after a junior Legion contest at Chaparral High School last Wednesday, league officials have issued a "No Tolerance Policy" regarding conduct by players, managers and fans toward umpires and officials.

After Chaparral coach Zenon Brooks was ejected during last week's Chaparral-Cheyenne contest, two parents got into a heated argument with the umpire who called the game and awarded Cheyenne with a victory.

According to several sources, one of the parents went to his car, returned with a baseball bat and reportedly struck the umpire on the hand with it.

Witnesses say Metro Police were called to the scene, although Metro Police could not confirm any arrests.

The league's new policy states that, "The direct line path from the vehicle of the umpire to the field of play is sacrosanct and will not be violated under any circumstances."

Junior Legion Commissioner Jim Petrelli spoke with both parents and told them not to attend any more games this summer.

"There is no place in any sport for any attack on any official who is just doing his job," said official Bill Boyd, who assigns the umpires for American Legion contests.

* TIDBITS: Durango recently finished second at its own Tufflite Summer Blazer Classic. The Trailblazers, who won the event the past two years, fell to Merced (Calif.), 10-6 in Sunday's championship. Durango wound up with a 4-2 record at the six-team event, which featured squads from California, Missouri and Indiana. ... Locals teams Bishop Gorman, Silverado, Cimarron-Memorial and Las Vegas were among the 10 entrants in the Ogden Raptors Pure Baseball Classic in Utah, a wooden-bat event. "We adjusted to them pretty well," said Art Besser, whose Silverado squad finished with a 4-2 tourney record and missed out on the winner's bracket final on a tiebreaker. "We got in the cages as much as we could with the wooden bats. They tried to work on putting the ball in play." The tournament was especially important for Gorman's Jason Van Meetren, who was playing before representatives from the Houston Astros, who have yet to sign the pitcher/outfielder. "He did swing the bat pretty well in the tournament," said Gorman coach Tim Chambers, whose team also went 4-2. "(The Astros) are trying to cover all their angles." Gorman's Joe Cannella was named to the all-tournament squad.

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