Former City College legend and Major League Baseball All Star Jesse Orosco will be inducted into the California Community College Athletic Association Hall of Fame on March 29.
The CCCAA was founded in 1984 and focuses on the excellence of community college athletes. Orosco will be the first former student athlete in Santa Barbara’s history to be inducted.
Orosco was coached by longtime City College coach and department chair Rusty Fairly who passed away last February.
The induction will be held at the Hilton Concord during the athletic association’s annual convention. Former athletic director Bob Dinaberg and women’s volleyball coach Pat Moorhouse are the two current City College members in the hall of fame.
“We are thrilled for Mr. Orosco on this prestigious recognition of his talents and work ethic while at SBCC,” said City College athletic director Ellen O’Connor.
Orosco was born on April 21, 1957 in Santa Barbara. He attended Santa Barbara High School before coming to City College.
Orosco played at City College from 1977-78 and helped lead his team to a Western State Conference title. He brought his winning mentality to the major league by winning two World Series with the New York Mets and Los Angeles Dodgers. Specifically, in 1986 while pitching for The Mets, Orosco struck out the final batter in Game No. 7 to win the series against The Boston Red Sox.
Orosco pitched in the major leagues for 24 years. He currently holds the major league record for most games pitched with 1,252.
He was drafted in 1978 by the Minnesota Twins but was quickly traded to the New York Mets. He played for nine organizations during his 24-year career and is one of the few players in league history to play over a span of four decades.
He ended his career with 87 wins, a 3.16 earned run average, 144 saved games, while also striking out over 1,100 batters. He was a major league All-Star in 1983 and 1984 as a member of the Mets.
Orosco absolutely loves his family and is extremely proud of all of his children. His daughter Natalie played on the City College softball team in 2012-2013 and he continues to be a strong supporter of City College athletics.
