From Harper to Puckett, Grand Junction a JUCO baseball mecca

A few years before Bryce Harper was hammering home runs at big league ballparks, the slugger had dreams of bashing baseballs in western Colorado.

Long before his bloody sock became the stuff of Red Sox legend, Curt Schilling took the mound for Yavapai College in 1986.

The likes of Gary Gentry, Kurt Bevacqua, Jim Leyritz, Eric Gagne, Travis Hafner, Cliff Lee, John Lackey, Adam LaRoche and Brandon Belt are also on the list of more than 120 future major leaguers who have played on junior college baseball's biggest stage.

The weeklong celebration of baseball has been in the leadoff spot for a few generations of residents, fans, players and coaches alike.

After rain kept attendance low, the NJCAA Division I tournament moved to Grand Junction on a trial run for one year — with the caveat that Mesa College, the local team, automatically qualify to draw fans.

Harper, who hit .462 with two homers and nine RBIs in the series, was ejected in the Coyotes' fourth game for arguing a called third strike with an umpire.

Howard College (Texas) won the 1991 championship behind Frank Rodriguez, a shortstop and right-handed pitcher who won the Dick Howser Trophy as college baseball's top player that year.