Fast Break

Baseball

5-time All-Star Murcer dies

Bobby Murcer, a five-time All-Star outfielder who spent nearly four decades with the New York Yankees as a player, executive and announcer, has died at a hospital in his hometown of Oklahoma City. He was 62.

The Yankees said Murcer died Saturday due to complications from brain cancer.

“Bobby Murcer was a born Yankee, a great guy, very well-liked and a true friend of mine,” Yankees owner George Steinbrenner said.

Murcer was diagnosed with a brain tumor on Christmas Eve 2006 after having headaches.

The only person to play with Mickey Mantle and Don Mattingly, the popular Murcer hit .277 with 252 home runs and 1,043 RBIs in 17 seasons with the Yankees, San Francisco and the Chicago Cubs. He made the All-Star team in both leagues and won a Gold Glove.

Touted by many in New York as the next Mantle – they were both from Oklahoma, played shortstop and came with strokes fit for Yankee Stadium’s short right-field porch – Murcer made his major league debut as a 19-year-old in 1965.

After serving in the U.S. Army during the 1967-68 seasons, Murcer homered on opening day in front of President Nixon in 1969 at Washington to launch a career as a full-time player.

College basketball

Gurganious heads to UC Riverside

Former Gonzaga men’s basketball player Larry Gurganious said Saturday he has decided to transfer to UC Riverside.

Gurganious, who announced in early June he was leaving GU for family reasons, picked UC Riverside over several other Big West Conference schools, including UC Irvine, UC Santa Barbara, Cal State Northridge and UC Davis.

“It’s the best fit for me,” said the 6-foot-5 Gurganious, who averaged 3.3 points and 2.6 rebounds in limited playing time as a sophomore last season. “It was for some of the same reasons as when I went on my Gonzaga (recruiting) trip. I got along with the guys really well and we’re all from the same area pretty much. We have seven new guys coming in that are great guys and looking to win. That’s the biggest thing – the program is ready to win.”

Gurganious is waiting for a ruling on his hardship waiver. If it’s approved, he would have two years of eligibility and could play next season. If it’s not approved, Gurganious would be required to sit out next season and then have one season of eligibility.

“I have a good feeling about it, but even if it doesn’t go through I still think I’m in the best place I can be,” he said.

Gurganious said he was recruited by UC Riverside assistant coach Vonn Webb when he was coming out of Saint Mary’s High School in Berkeley, Calif.

Gonzaga thumped UC Riverside 84-48 last season at the McCarthey Athletic Center. The Highlanders finished 9-21 in head coach Jim Wooldridge’s first season.