BOISE, Idaho — THIS DAY IN SPORTS — July 11, 2015:
Bishop Kelly grad Josh Osich becomes only the third native Boisean to record a major league victory, joining Borah High alum Stephen Fife a couple years before and Pat House, who won two games for the Houston Astros in the late 1960’s. Osich got the Giants out of a jam against Philadelphia, recording the one out he had to against the only batter he faced in the top of the sixth, and he was the pitcher of record when the Giants scored five runs in the bottom of the inning — and ended up winning 8-5.
Osich, a former BK quarterback who went on to become a star hurler for Oregon State, retired in April of this year. After four seasons with the Giants, he pitched for the White Sox, Red Sox, Cubs and Reds. In seven major league seasons, Osich is 13-6 with a 5.02 ERA in 251 appearances. His best season by far was his rookie campaign in San Francisco, when he threw in 35 games and posted an ERA of 2.20 and a 2-0 record.
Boise High grad James Hoyt of the Houston Astros has since become the fourth native Boisean with a big league win. What about Larry Jackson, you ask? Jackson was one of the most prolific pitchers ever to come out of Idaho (along with Vern Law). He once starred for Boise Junior College (where he also played quarterback) and was a charter member of the Boise State Athletic Hall of Fame in 1982. Jackson won 194 major league games and was the winning pitcher in the 1963 All-Star Game. He won 24 games for the Cubs in 1964 and was runner-up in voting for the Cy Young Award that year. But…Jackson was born in Nampa.
Which gives me a chance to talk about Michael Stefanic, born in Boise in 1996. The Timberline High alum is a current story, as on July 3 he became the first native Idahoan who also graduated from an Idaho high school to make the majors as a position player since none other than Hall of Famer Harmon Killebrew. Now, Stefanic has the look of an everyday second baseman for the L.A. Angels.
Since making his debut, Stefanic has started five of six games and is hitting .389 after going 2-for-2 in Sunday’s 9-5 loss at Baltimore. He has certainly justified his call-up as an undrafted overachiever. Stefanic has also shown some fearlessness in the batter’s box, having been hit by two pitches in Saturday’s game against the Orioles. One put a visible dent in his batting helmet. Can’t wait for Stefanic’s first big league home run. It is coming.
(Tom Scott hosts the Scott Slant segment during the football season on KTVB’s Sunday Sports Extra. He also anchors four sports segments each weekday on 95.3 FM KTIK and one on News/Talk KBOI. His Scott Slant column runs every Wednesday.)
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