EXCLUSIVE: The Dick’s Perfect Game All-American Classic will not just have star power on the field this year, but star power in the dugouts as well.
Baseball Hall of Famer Trevor Hoffman and former San Diego Padres All-Star Ryan Klesko will serve as managers for the game, Fox News Digital exclusively learned Tuesday.
Perfect Game’s All-American Classic features the top 60 high school baseball players across North America and provides them a platform to showcase their talents on a national stage. This year, the nation’s top high school players will compete at Petco Park, home of the San Diego Padres, on Aug. 17.
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The All-American Classic debuted in 2003, and since its inception, the game has seen some of the biggest names in Major League Baseball play in the event. Bryce Harper, Gunnar Henderson, Bobby Witt. Jr, Gerrit Cole and Francisco Lindor are among the star players who have played in the game over the years.
Of the 1,126 players who have participated in the event over the last 22 years, 850 were drafted, and 293 players went in the first round.
Hoffman, who has the second most saves in MLB history (601), has been involved with the event for over a decade and has served as the game’s honorary chairman. The Padres great said he is excited to be in the dugout and interact with the nation’s top high school players.
“I think that’s the biggest opportunity I have. It’s one thing to walk around with a PG t-shirt or a polo and then kids try to figure out who you are. But you have a uniform on, you are in the dugout, and you are actually interacting with them. Whether it’s in batting practice or during the game, it’s just going to have a different feel,” Hoffman told Fox News Digital.
“When you’re out with the kids and getting an opportunity to share your insights and giving them the opportunity to show their stuff, you are just right there. Easy opportunity to encourage and get to know them, so I’m really looking forward to the game and being around the kids.”
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Klesko said if he had not had events like the All-American Classic growing up, he might not have ever made it to the big leagues.
“If we didn’t have the help growing up and have events like this to be able to attend and showcase ourselves, fortunate (growing up) in California, and we had a little bit of that going on, not as much as it is now, but it wasn’t for events like this and coaches helping us and getting some instruction, I know never would have made it,” Klesko told Fox News Digital.
The 16-year MLB veteran said he is “excited” to be part of the journey for the young athletes in this year’s game.
“A lot of these guys, like it’s so overwhelming, and they got so much advice coming in from so many different areas,” Klesko said.
“I think for us, it’s not necessarily telling them what to do, but just giving them advice kind of on what we’ve been through in the past and just to help them navigate. It’s not about us, it’s about their next steps and I think we’re all excited to be part of that journey for these young athletes.”
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Hoffman and Klesko also each have coaching staffs littered with former MLB stars for the game.
Their coaching staff is composed of Padres All-Stars Phil Nevin and Mark Loretta, World Series-winning manager Charlie Manuel, 20-game winner Scott Erickson, 1995 AL MVP Mo Vaughn, 7-time All-Star Alfonso Soriano, 3-time All-Star Tom “Flash” Gordon, World Series champion Jose Contreras, and MLB veterans Todd Coffey and Jason Phillips.
Hoffman said for the coaches, they jumped at the opportunity to help the next generation of stars through the process.
“I think it was an opportunity really that they wanted to be around the kids,” Hoffman said.
“It’s about the kids, and it’s about the kids and the game at all levels. So when you get an opportunity to talk to some people that have been through the process, like Ryan (Klesko) said, and to have great people that are mentoring kids in other places, what a great situation you are putting together.”
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Daron Sutton, whose extensive MLB on-air experience has ranged from pregame and postgame host to play-by-play announcer since 1998, has announced the All-American Classic since 2009 and will be announcing it again this year.
Sutton told Fox News Digital that while the event has evolved over the years, the event has always had elite talent.
“I’d like to tell you the talent has evolved, but the talent’s been there from the very beginning. My second game, a 16-year-old Bryce Harper played in it, so there was always talent. Right after that, (Francisco) Lindor and Javy Baez were in the game. There has always been elite talent.”
Sutton said his favorite part of the game are the “single moments” that occur.
“All-star games are fun and unique because it’s all about the individual. There are not strategic decisions being made, there is no intentional walks that are doled out, no pitch outs or anything, that’s a different kind of broadcast,” Sutton told Fox News Digital.
“We’re all baseball fans, we know what that is, so it’s the single moment. An opportunity for an athlete to have a moment and then seeing them deliver.”
“Like any great Home Run Derby or All-Star game, it’s that one unforgettable moment, we have dozens of them.”
For Brad Clement, Perfect Game’s executive vice president and general manager, his favorite part of the event is the philanthropic aspect of it.
“The event itself is incredible, all of the different baseball activities, the swag they get. But almost to a player, the most impactful thing when we’ve been in San Diego has been seeing those kids that have dealt with or are dealing with pediatric cancer at the hospital because we do that visit. Really, that’s what it’s all about,” Clement told Fox News Digital.
“We’re thrilled again to be (donors) of Rady’s children’s hospital, one of the elite hospitals in the world. Their outreach is incredible and this event itself has raised over a million dollars over the years. Now that includes the players and families who are encouraged to raise money through their resources in their communities and almost all do, and our partners. Overall, I know we’re north of 1.5 million in the total philanthropic give for just this event in the various cities it’s been in since its inception over 20 plus years ago.”
Hoffman echoed Clement and said his favorite part of the event is when the athletes go to Rady Children’s Hospital in San Diego.
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“The kids get a chance to go and visit Rady’s children’s hospital, see some of the kids who are younger and maybe a little less fortunate, and they are going through some hardships, and they get to really appreciate what their opportunities are. There is a charitable arm that they get to participate with and allow their hometown communities to support them and make a donation to Rady’s, which is fantastic,” Hoffman said.
Perfect Game’s All-American Classic is not just for the players to showcase their talent, but their families as well. Clement said that Perfect Game hosts a parent symposium to highlight what will be coming for their kids over the next year.
“We think it’s important off the field to share with them what the next year is going to be like, so we have a parents’ symposium to help them learn what this is going to be like right now and for last year’s (class) going into it because the high school season is over, and the draft is upon us. There are a lot of heady things that go into that, whether they go to college or sign a contract, whatever it is. So we try to help the parents out,” Clement said.
Klesko said he is most looking forward to helping not just kids, but their families through the process.
“I think just helping them go through the process. I know a lot of kids, a lot of families, it’s just all new to them. There is so much stuff being thrown at them,” Klesko said.
“If Trevor and I and some of the other major leaguers can sort of help them navigate through the process of going pro, going to school, whether it would be nutrition or training. There are so many different questions out there that are going through these kids’ minds.”
Hoffman said it’s been “special” to see the event grow over the years.
“(The kids’) talents are off the charts, the competition is real, and it’s just great to provide a platform that they can do those sort of things,” Hoffman said.
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