Andy Benes to be Guest Speaker at First Pitch Celebration

Former St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Andy Benes has been announced as the guest speaker at Mizzou Baseball's First Pitch Celebration.  Benes' son, Shane Benes, made an early verbal commitment to Mizzou back in November.  Benes' brother, Alan, is a scout for the Cardinals and is seen somehwat often at Mizzou games.

Details for the First Pitch, including cost of the event, are avialable HERE.

♦ Andy Benes to Speak at First Pitch Dinner (mutigers.com)

Join the Mizzou baseball program in kicking off the 2013 season as generations of the Tiger Baseball family will come together to recognize past and present achievements in a fun-filled evening on Saturday, Feb. 9, at the Holiday Inn Executive Center by the Columbia Mall. The event will run from 7-9:30 p.m. and doors open at 6:30.

The Ninth Annual First Pitch Celebration will include hors d'oeuvres, beverages for young and old, introductions of past and present players, an outlook of the Tigers' inaugural SEC season and a silent auction featuring prestigious professional and collegiate items. Make it a weekend by taking in the Tiger basketball game against Ole Miss at noon on Saturday, Feb. 9th.

This year's guest speaker will be former St. Louis Cardinals All-Star pitcher Andy Benes. A fan-favorite while in St. Louis, Benes compiled a career ERA of 3.97 while winning 155 big league games with 2,000 career strikeouts. He was an All-Star selection while pitching for the San Diego Padres in 1993. Benes was the first player selected in the 1988 MLB Draft and finished third in the Cy Young voting in 1996. He played 14 seasons in majors.

♦ Sample of Benes as a speaker, from YouTube: