Villa Park’s Gavin Grahovac was series MVP, but Lemmon and Owens were stars too

Guy Lemmon (left) and Dick Owens had to make numerous adjustments during the Ryan Lemmon series. (Photo Tim Burt, OC Sports Zone)

COMMENTARY

Officially, Villa Park’s talented sophomore shortstop Gavin Grahovac was the most valuable player of the Ryan Lemmon series after leading the Spartans to a 7-2 victory over Dana Hills in the championship game Wednesday night.

But two men who didn’t play an inning but played a big role in the event coming together and finishing successfully were tournament director Dick Owens and Guy Lemmon, president of the Ryan Lemmon Foundation.

The two had go through numerous challenges during the past few months to make the event possible in light of the coronavirus pandemic.

At times, the prospects for such a tournament looked bleak as coronavirus case numbers remained high and restrictions from the California Department of Public Health remained in place regarding tournaments.

But the two pressed on, determined to make this year’s event happen. Last year’s Ryan Lemmon Showcase, which was scheduled to include 32 teams, was cancelled due to the pandemic. But then numbers began to improve and high school baseball was given the green light to start up.

That didn’t mean the Ryan Lemmon series was definitely on.

A couple weeks before the event, Owens announced that it wouldn’t be called a tournament and that most of the games would be held at host ball parks in Orange County with the championship and a few other games at the Great Park. That seemed to be the most logical approach to keep the players, coaches and fans safe. Attendance at the host parks was determined by the schools. State officials warned that tournaments weren’t allowed and no more than two teams could be at one location.

There were other obstacles.

The two also learned that the Irvine schools that had sent teams to the invitational, including the host school Woodbridge, wouldn’t be able to compete because the Pacific Coast League teams had arranged a 24-game league only schedule with no tournaments.

But, Owens and Lemmon still had 26 quality teams, including some of the best in Orange County, and went on with the event.

No admission was charged for the championship game Wednesday at the Orange County Great Park Stadium. Fans and media had to go through temperature checks and there were no concessions sold. Still, the estimated 175 fans seemed to have a good time. Reporters who covered the game were asked to sit in the stands, not the press box. Fans socially distanced, they wore masks and they enjoyed a night of baseball, thanks to Guy Lemmon and Dick Owens and the Ryan Lemmon Foundation.

It also represented a sense that we are starting to get back to some sense of normalcy. With case numbers declining and Orange County moving into the less restrictive orange tier, it looks like sports is on its way back in a big way.

If the progress continues, we should be able to call it the Ryan Lemmon Invitational again next year with a full field including the Irvine teams who have pledged to return.

—Tim Burt, OC Sports Zone; timburt@ocsportszone.com

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