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Orange County Flyers Begin 2010 Season Today

May 21, 2010 - Golden Baseball League (GBL)
Orange County Flyers News Release


FLYERS BEGINS 2010 CAMPAIGN WITH FOUR GAMES AGAINST ROADRUNNERS St. George series kicks off 18-game road trip before home opener June 15

ST. GEORGE, Utah -- The Orange County Flyers begin their sixth season of professional baseball this evening against the St. George RoadRunners at Bruce Hurst Field. The Flyers will send 2009 GBL Pitcher of the Year Matt Durkin to the mound as the team's opening day starter. Durkin, who went 11-4 last season and came within one win of the GBL record 12, is a former 2nd round draft pick of the New York Mets. Durkin will square off against RoadRunners' lefty Brian Holliday, a former Double-A prospect of the Pittsburgh Pirates. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05pm Mountain time (6:05pm Pacific).

Flyers Manager Paul Abbott is in his first season running the Flyers after serving as pitching coach in 2009. Abbott played for the Fullerton Flyers during the GBL's inaugural 2005 season. The RoadRunners are managed by former Flyers hitting coach Darrell Evans, who earned a ring with the team in 2008. Evans is going into his fifth season as a manager in the GBL, having managed the Long Beach Armada (2005-2007) and Victoria Seals (2009) before coming to St. George in the off-season.

Last season the Flyers and RoadRunners squared off 20 times during the regular season, with the Flyers winning the season-long battle, 12-8. St. George won the first-half South Division title and advanced to the first postseason in franchise history in 2009. The Flyers lead the all-time series, 27-20.

All games this season can be heard live through the team's website www.OrangeCountyFlyers.com. The Locallife.com pre-game show begins 15 minutes before scheduled first pitch.

Orange County Flyers / GBL information The Orange County Flyers - the 2008 Golden Baseball League Champions - are an independent, professional minor league baseball team, which plays home games in Fullerton, Calif. The team will be managed in 2010 by 11-season MLB veteran and Sunny Hills (Fullerton) High School alum Paul Abbott. Past managers include former Major League stars Garry Templeton, Gary Carter and Phil Nevin. The league, which was founded in 2005, consists of 10 teams from California, Arizona, Utah, Western Canada and now Hawaii and Mexico. The GBL is widely considered one of the most talent-laden independent leagues in the nation, with former major leaguers on most every roster. Notable former Major Leaguers to play in the GBL include Rickey Henderson, Jose Canseco, Jose Lima, Hideki Irabu, Junior Spivey and Scott Speizio. This season, former NL All-Star Byung-Hyun Kim will take the mound for the Flyers as one of three former big-leaguers on the squad.

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