Saturday, December 25, 2004
Reading, Dodgers legend Osteen among ’04 class
Buddy LaRosa’s High School Sports Hall of Fame
By Tom Groeschen
Enquirer staff writer
Terry Malone was 360-177-8 as coach at Badin and old Hamilton Catholic.
Enquirer file
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Claude Osteen helped pitch the Los Angeles Dodgers to a world championship, but he still rates his Reading High School state baseball title among his fondest memories.
Osteen is among inductees in the 30th annual Buddy LaRosa’s High School Sports Hall of Fame class, announced each Christmas.
The LaRosa’s Hall is considered the pinnacle for Greater Cincinnati prep sports figures. This year’s class includes Osteen (Reading class of 1957), former NFL tight end Don Hasselbeck (La Salle ’73), record-setting wrestler Willie Wineberg (Fairfield ’94), basketball star Troy McKinley (Simon Kenton ’81), multi-sport star Maureen Shea Kaiser (St. Henry ’85), girls’ basketball coach Mark Ehlen (old Forest Park High School) and football coach Terry Malone (Badin).
Osteen was a 15-game winner on the Dodgers’ 1965 world title team, the No. 3 starter behind Hall of Famers Sandy Koufax and Don Drysdale. Osteen was a three-time All-Star during an 18-year big league career, twice had 20-win seasons, and went 196-195 overall with a stellar 3.30 career ERA.
He also was the ace of Reading’s 1957 Class AA state championship team, going 16-0 with 221 strikeouts in 103 2/3 innings. He had an 0.13 ERA that year, and overall had a 23-1 record during his prep career.
“I can remember those days as if it were yesterday, “Osteen said. “Our state title ranks right up there at the top of my remembrances of baseball, including my professional career. When you have success like that in high school, it affects you for the rest of your life.”
Osteen is now a consultant for the Arizona Diamondbacks. He lives in Arlington, Texas, with his wife Jackie, and has five children.
A look at the other inductees:
“¢ Hasselbeck, perhaps the finest all-around athlete in La Salle history, was a Parade magazine All-American in football, all-city in basketball and a standout in track.
He played college football at Colorado. He was a Sporting News first-team All-American as a senior and was a second-round draftee of the New England Patriots. He played seven years with New England and in 1983 was traded to the Raiders, where he played for a Super Bowl title team. He also played for Minnesota and the New York Giants, with 107 career receptions and 18 touchdowns.
Hasselbeck is now Senior Director-Footwork for Reebok. He lives in Norfolk, Mass., with his wife Betsy. Two of his three sons (Matt with Seattle, Tim with Washington) are NFL quarterbacks. Moderator’s note: And the father-in-law to Elizabeth Hasselbeck, from the CBS TV show “Survivor “a couple years ago, and now on “The View “on ABC-TV on weekday mornings.
“¢ Wineberg is the first wrestler to be inducted into the LaRosa’s Hall. He became the first Ohio Division I wrestler to win four consecutive state championships, at 103 pounds as a freshman, 112 as both a sophomore and junior, and 125 as a senior.
“It’s an honor to get in the LaRosa’s Hall, “Wineberg said. “Wrestling doesn’t get a lot of recognition at times, and hopefully some other deserving people will get in too.”
Wineberg was a prep wrestling All-American and also ran cross-country, while compiling a 3.87 grade point average. He competed throughout the world and wrestled at Purdue University, where he ranks third all-time in winning percentage. He is now head wrestling coach at Miamisburg High School near Dayton.
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