PORTLAND, Ore. --- 12-time all-star and 2001 Baseball Hall of Fame Inductee Dave Winfield will be the featured speaker at the University of Portland’s 2009 Diamond Dinner, which marks the unofficial beginning to the baseball season. Now in its eighth year, the event has grown and evolved into Pilot baseball’s premier fund-raiser and annual tradition.
“The Diamond Dinner is a special way for us to kick off the baseball season,” UP head baseball coach Chris Sperry said. “It started as a potluck dinner in 2001 and has grown into a great way to celebrate Pilots baseball. Our vision was to expand so that we could involve more people, including baseball alumni, general baseball fans and UP baseball supporters.”
The Diamond Dinner is scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 7, 2009 at the Marriott Waterfront in downtown Portland, Ore. The event is open to the public and tickets are $100 each or $1,000 for an entire table of 10. Festivities begin with a social hour and a silent auction starting at 5:00 p.m. Dinner is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. and the program is slated to begin at 7:30 p.m.
A true five-tool athlete who never spent a day in the minor leagues, Dave Winfield played 22 seasons. At six-feet, six-inches tall, he was an imposing figure and a durable strongman with the rare ability to combine power and consistency. In tours of duty with six major league teams, Winfield batted .283, hit 465 home runs, and amassed 3,110 hits. He was a seven-time Gold Glove winner and helped lead the Toronto Blue Jays to their first World Championship in 1992.
Winfield is also a member of the College Baseball Hall of Fame after a stellar career at the University of Minnesota. Following college, the San Diego Padres selected him as an outfielder with the fourth overall pick in the MLB draft, while both the Atlanta Hawks (NBA) and the Utah Stars (ABA) drafted him as well. And even though he never played college football, the Minnesota Vikings selected Winfield in the 17th round of the NFL draft. He is currently one of two players ever to be drafted by three professional sports.
“We’ve had some terrific speakers at the Diamond Dinner and we couldn’t be more excited to include Dave Winfield this year,” said Sperry. “I’ve always viewed him as a very bright, intellectual and caring person. He was at the top of his game for so many years and I think he’s a true role model and a great ambassador for the game.”
To purchase tickets or to receive more information, please contact Beth Connell at 503-943-7245, or by e-mail at connell@up.edu.
