Bauer’s debut not the only anticipated Valley beginning

Jun 28, 2012, 6:48 PM | Updated: 7:55 pm

Arizona Sports

The Arizona Diamondbacks added to their stable of talented,
young pitching arms in June of 2011 when they selected
Trevor Bauer, the Golden Spikes Award winner from UCLA, with
the third overall pick of the First Year Player Draft.

Since signing with Arizona, Bauer has dominated at three
levels of the minor leagues, going 12-3 with a 3.03 ERA in
23 starts over the last two seasons.

Bauer makes his long-awaited MLB debut Thursday night when
he faces the Atlanta Braves at Turner Field.

His debut is the latest in a long line of anticipated
appearances in Valley sports history.

We’ve put together a slideshow of some of the other
anticipated debuts in Phoenix sports history — whether they
worked out well or not.

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A little more than a year after the Diamonbacks
made Trevor Bauer the 3rd overall pick in the
MLB Draft, the UCLA product will make his debut
against the Atlanta Braves June 28, 2012.

After being acquired from Philadelphia in the
offseason, Cardinals quarterback Kevin Kolb got
his first crack at the QB position on September
11, 2011, leading Arizona to a 28-21 win over
the Carolina Panthers in Glendale.

Max Hall was a local kid, an undrafted rookie
and a backup to a lousy starting quarterback.
All these factors contributed to Valley fans
clamoring for Hall to start for the Cardinals.
Hall helped the Cards beat the Saints in that
first start by throwing for 168 yards October
10, 2010.

His stay in the desert didn't work out so well,
but Shaquille O'Neal's first game as a Sun was
an event. The All-Star scored 15 points and
grabbed 9 rebounds in a loss to his former
team, the Los Angeles Lakers, February 20,
2008.

The only top overall pick by one of the four
major league Phoenix teams ever, Justin Upton
came to the Valley with
an impressive amateur r

Matt Leinart was one of the most decorated
college QBs of all-time when the Cardinals made
him the 10th overall pick of the 2006 NFL
Draft. In his first start, Arizona's QB of the
future threw for 253 yards and two TDs in a
loss to the Chiefs October 8, 2006.

Would the "Great One" become a great coach?
Phoenix fans thought so when Wayne Gretzky took
the reins of the Coyotes' bench. Gretzky's
team lost its debut 3-2 to the Vancouver
Canucks on October 5, 2005. Incidentally, his
coaching record was 143-161-24 in four seasons.

Steve Nash was drafted by the Suns in 1996,
traded to Dallas in 1998, and returned to PHX a
former All-Star in 2004. In his first game
back, he scored 12 points and handed out 4
assists in a win over Atlanta November 3, 2004.

The upstart Diamondbacks swung a big trade
midway through the 2000 season to pick up Curt
Schilling from Philadelphia. The right-hander
allowed one earned run in eight innings in his
Arizona debut -- a 4-1 win over Florida July
28, 2000.

A former Cy Young winner signing with a one-
year-old expansion team? That's what happened
when the D-backs landed Randy Johnson, and the
Big Unit didn't disappoint in his debut,
allowing just 2 earned runs and striking out 9
in a loss to the Dodgers April 5, 1999.

ASU hero Jake Plummer was a second round pick
of the Cardinals in 1997, and the locals
couldn't wait for him to start. "The Snake"
threw four picks in an ugly 41-14 loss to
Tennessee in his debut October 26, 1997.

New to the Valley, the Phoenix Coyotes made a
splash when they traded for NHL superstar
Jeremy Roenick, who debuted with his new team
October 14, 1996 and had an assist in a loss to
the Edmonton Oilers.

"You've got a winner in town"...or maybe not.
The Arizona Cardinals looked to 46 Defense
architect Buddy Ryan to turn around their
fortunes. Ryan's two-year tenure got off to a
rocky start with a 14-12 loss to the L.A. Rams
September 4, 1994.

Has there ever been a more anticipated Valley
debut than that of Charles Barkley with the
Suns in 1992? Sir Charles scored 37 points and
grabbed 20 rebounds in his first game as a Sun
on November 7, 1992.

The Phoenix Suns made a huge free agent splash
in signing All-Star forward Tom Chambers in
1988. In his first game in the purple and
orange, Chambers scored 25 points and grabbed 8
rebounds in a loss to Portland November 4,
1988.

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