Freddy Sanchez

PAWTUCKET RED SOX SECOND BASEMAN Just six years after graduating from Burbank High School, the baseball standout made it to the major leagues with the Boston Red Sox in 2002 ... in his first big-league at-bat, Sanchez, 25, got a base hit. Since being selected in the 2000 draft, Sanchez has enjoyed a meteoric rise through the Red Sox organization ... he is currently with Boston's triple-A team in Pawtucket, where he...

SAN FRANCISCO — He knew what he could do. But Freddy Sanchez wondered in the difficult times — when his body was slow in healing, when the fans and media were slow in acceptance — would there be a chance to do it? "When you're hurt," concedes Sanchez, "and you're not out there with your guys, there are a million things going through your head. You're not in a good mental state. You're not on the field proving what you can do. " It didn't matter that he had been the best hitter in the National League a few years earlier.

BURBANK HIGH — Freddy Sanchez is proud of where he came from, and he never wants to forget that. He feels fortunate to have grown up in Burbank and to have graduated from Burbank High. It is because of the positive experiences he enjoyed as a youth that has motivated the Pittsburgh Pirates second baseman to give back. “Whatever I can do to help, I want to help,” said Sanchez, 30, a two-time All-Star and the 2006 National League batting champion. “This is where I came from, this is my home, and I’m definitely proud of where I come from I’ll never forget where I came from.

Standing on the grass around home plate at Dodger Stadium, Freddy Sanchez isn't hard to spot; he's the player with the biggest smile. The former Burbank High and Glendale Community College standout appears uncharacteristically relaxed as he waits to take his hacks in the batting cage before a recent game between his Pittsburgh Pirates and the Dodgers. He jokes with teammates, talks with onlookers and even takes time to waive to some friends in the stands. He is a player at ease, comfortable in his role as a Major League Baseball player and confident in his ability to put the bat on the ball with remarkable consistency.

NEW YORK — Playing in Yankee Stadium will always hold a special meaning for Freddy Sanchez. As a 24-year-old playing for the Boston Red Sox's triple-A affiliate Pawtucket Red Sox in 2002, Sanchez finally got called up to the Major Leagues. Sanchez, a Burbank High graduate, was put on a train to meet the Red Sox for the second game of a three-game series with the archrival Yankees. He arrived wide-eyed at the hallowed venue that was built in 1923 as a showplace for New York slugger Babe Ruth.

BURBANK ? Shocked. Surprised. That's how Freddy Sanchez ? and likely a great deal of others ? felt late Sunday afternoon when it was announced that the former Burbank High and Glendale Community College standout had been selected to appear in his second straight Major League Baseball All-Star Game. "Shocked," the Pittsburgh Pirates second baseman told the Associated Press. "I'm totally shocked." Sanchez didn't even finish among the top-eight National League second basemen in All-Star fan voting.

Jeff Tully In a few weeks, baseball player Freddy Sanchez will get the opportunity of a lifetime when he suits up and reports for spring training with the Boston Red Sox. Sanchez, 24, is a former Burbank High and Glendale Community College standout who has been able to rocket through a Red Sox minor league system notorious for slow player progression. The 5-foot-11, 185-pound infielder is scheduled to show up Jan. 30 for the beginning of spring training in Fort Myers, Fla. He will be vying for a spot on a team with one of the most storied histories in major league baseball.

BURBANK ? In just his second full season in the big leagues, Freddy Sanchez got the chance to do something most players never experience. On Tuesday, the Burbank High graduate suited up for the National League team in the 77th Major League Baseball Game at PNC Park in Pittsburgh. Sanchez's squad lost the game, 3-2, as the American League secured home-field advantage for the World Series. Sanchez, 28 ? a 1996 Burbank graduate ? is a third baseman with the Pittsburgh Pirates.

TULLY TALK Dan Mahoney doesn't know Freddy Sanchez personally. Mahoney didn't go to school with the former Burbank High and Boston Red Sox standout infielder, and lives 2,979 miles away from where Sanchez grew up. However, although he lives in Rhode Island, Mahoney became a big Sanchez fan and has even started and maintained a Web site devoted to Sanchez -- www.freddysanchez.com. "It all started as a school project," said Mahoney, who attends small Bryant College in Smithfield, R.I. "I had a humanities class and one of our projects was to create and maintain a Web site on a subject that interested us."

The journey has been a long one for Freddy Sanchez. From toiling countless hours as a youth on the baseball fields of Burbank, to competing for three junior colleges — including a year at Glendale Community College — to years of making his way through the minor leagues to nine seasons in the majors, Sanchez has definitely paid his dues. As a wide-eyed youth with dreams of someday playing in a World Series, Sanchez never gave up on his lofty goal. Even early last season, when he remained stuck in the Siberia of Major League Baseball — Pittsburgh — he never gave up hope.

SAN FRANCISCO — He knew what he could do. But Freddy Sanchez wondered in the difficult times — when his body was slow in healing, when the fans and media were slow in acceptance — would there be a chance to do it? "When you're hurt," concedes Sanchez, "and you're not out there with your guys, there are a million things going through your head. You're not in a good mental state. You're not on the field proving what you can do. " It didn't matter that he had been the best hitter in the National League a few years earlier.

BURBANK — The San Francisco Giants will have to wait at least one more game to advance to the World Series for the first time since 2002. Though former Burbank High and Glendale Community College standout Freddy Sanchez collected two hits, it wasn't enough, as the Philadelphia Phillies recorded a 4-2 victory against host San Francisco on Thursday night in the fifth game of the National League Championship Series. The Giants hold a 3-2 lead in the series, which will shift back to Philadelphia for the sixth game Saturday.

BURBANK — After nine seasons, 844 Major League Baseball games and 3,161 at-bats, Freddy Sanchez is finally getting the opportunity to compete in the postseason for the first time. Sanchez, a Burbank High graduate who attended Glendale Community College, is in the midst of the National League Division Series against the Atlanta Braves. The Giants began the best-of- five series Thursday at home. Sanchez went hitless in four plate appearances in San Francisco's 1-0 home victory against the Braves.

Freddy Sanchez (Burbank High, 1996) second baseman, San Francisco Giants : The veteran is trying to help the Giants stay in the pennant race, and in contention for the wild-card in the National League. Heading into Tuesday's games, San Francisco (67-52) trailed the San Diego Padres (70-47) in the race for the NL West Division championship by four games. San Francisco is currently in a three-game series at the Philadelphia Phillies, while the Padres are in Chicago for a series with the Cubs.

Freddy Sanchez’s injury trials and tribulations continue, so much so that they have sparked debate with the San Francisco Giants as to whether trading and subsequently resigning the former Burbank High and Glendale Community College standout was the right move to make. Sanchez, the 32-year-old San Francisco Giants starting second baseman, recently underwent left shoulder surgery, his second surgical procedure of the offseason, and is in doubt for the Opening Day lineup. On Thursday, Giants Manager Bruce Bochy confirmed to the Associated Press that Sanchez had indeed undergone an arthroscopic procedure on his left shoulder.

A look back at the top stories from each year over the last decade.   2000 Burbank boys’ cross-country team makes history : The Bulldogs weren’t even the best team in the Foothill League, however, they ended up being one of the top finishers in the state. Paced by senior Thomas Harley and Coaches Bob Shaw and Sasha Vujic, Burbank became the first team in school history to qualify for the annual CIF-State Cross-Country Championships.

BURBANK ? Former Burbank High and Glendale Community College standout Freddy Sanchez will be staying put on the West Coast. Sanchez, a three-time All-Star and the 2006 National League batting champion, signed a two-year extension Friday with the San Francisco Giants. Terms of the deal weren?t announced, though mlb.com reported that Sanchez?s salary package might exceed the two-year, $10 million deal the Pittsburgh Pirates offered him shortly before trading him to San Francisco on July 29. The San Francisco Chronicle reported that Sanchez, a second baseman, will be paid $6 million per year.

Keeping up with the lone local playing in the major leagues:   FREDDY SANCHEZ (Burbank High) infielder, San Francisco Giants : Sanchez has a chance to experience something he has never accomplished in his Major League Baseball career. In his eight-year professional career, the Burbank High graduate has never competed in a postseason game. However, after being traded to the San Francisco Giants late last month, Sanchez, a 31-year-old infielder, is involved in the postseason chase.

BURBANK — With the San Francisco Giants entrenched in a pair of races — for the National League West Division and wild-card — it would help to have their starting second baseman on board. Unfortunately for Freddy Sanchez, a former Burbank High and Glendale Community College standout, he hasn’t been healthy enough to compete. Sanchez, who was acquired from the Pittsburgh Pirates on July 29, was placed on the disabled list Tuesday with a strained left shoulder.