2022 Celebrity speaker Oakland Athletics Eric Byrnes
Eric James Byrnes is a San Francisco Bay Area native who grew up in Woodside, CA and attended St. Francis High School (Mountain View) where he excelled playing both football and baseball in the prestigious West Catholic Athletic League. Byrnes regularly competed against fellow major leaguer Pat Burrell (Bellermine Prep) and future NFL Hall of Fame'r Tom Brady (Serra) in both sports. After his senior year Byrnes was selected by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 1994 Major League Baseball draft but elected to attend UCLA on an athletic scholarship.
At UCLA, Byrnes was an All American outfielder and multiple time recipient of the Bruin Academic Award, given to the player with the highest GPA. After a trip to the College World Series in 1997, Byrnes was drafted by the Houston Astros but again chose to put professional baseball on hold in favor of education. In 1998, after his Senior year, Byrnes was drafted for the 3rd time and eventually signed with the Oakland Athletics. Byrnes was elected into the UCLA Athletic Hall of Fame in 2013.
Byrnes made his Major League debut with the Oakland A's against the Cleveland Indians on August 22, 2000. He singled sharply up the middle in his first at bat against All Star Chuck Finley and finished the day 2-4 with a stolen base and 2 runs scored. He also nearly incited a bench clearing brawl with his aggressive style of play. Byrnes was part of the 2002 Oakland A's "Moneyball" team that broke a modern day record with 20 consecutive wins.
In 2003, Byrnes hit in 22 consecutive games and while playing against his favorite childhood team, the San Francisco Giants, Byrnes became the 1st player in AT&T Park history to hit for the cycle. Byrnes played parts of 6 seasons with the A's and was a member of 4 playoff teams.
In 2005, Byrnes was traded to the Colorado Rockies and then 2 weeks later was traded to the Baltimore Orioles. He was released by the Orioles at the end of the 2005 season.
Byrnes signed a free agent contract with the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2006 and went on to hit 26 home runs and steal 25 bases. While playing for the Diamondbacks in 2007, Byrnes became the 11th player in Major League history to hit 20 home runs and steal 50 bases. That same year he won the "Fielding Bible Award," handed out to baseball's best defensive left fielder. During Byrnes' time with the Diamondbacks, he hosted and co produced the Emmy award winning "Eric Byrnes Show" on Fox Sports Arizona. The 30 minute once a month show provided viewers with an in depth look into a major leaguers life on and off the field.
Byrnes went on to play parts of 11 big league seasons with the Oakland A's, Colorado Rockies, Baltimore Orioles, Arizona Diamondbacks and Seattle Mariners. He compiled 109 career home runs and 129 stolen bases.
In 2010 Byrnes walked away from baseball and began a career in broadcasting. He has since worked for ESPN, FOX, SiriusXM and KNBR. Byrnes is currently an analyst with MLB Network. His unique and straightforward approach has helped him become one of the most entertaining and polarizing broadcasters in sports television.
Byrnes is an avid supporter of the Pat Tillman Foundation, Challenged Athletes Foundation and Fit Kids. He resides in Half Moon Bay, Truckee and New York City with his wife Tarah, a former Miss California USA 2002, and their 3 children, Chloe, Cali and Colton.
The Celebrity Dinner Auction is Physical Education and Athletic's annual fundraiser. The money we raise helps fund all of our seventeen intercollegiate athletic teams. It is a very important part of our ability to offer our athletes the opportunity to compete in a first class program. If you would like to donate an auction item or make a monetary contribution to the 2020 Celebrity Auction please click here.
Past Celebrity Auction Speakers:
1995 Jim Plunkett
1996 Fred Biletnikoff
1997 Ronnie Lott
1998 Jim Otto
1999 Jason Seahorn
2000 Rich Eisen
2001 Jon Miller
2002 Leon Donohue
2003 Harmon Killebrew
2004 Dick Fosbury
2005 Bill Laskey
2006 Ricky Ray
2007 Cliff Branch
2008 Dan Fouts
2009 Marshall Faulk
2010 Ken Stabler
2011 Bruce Jenner
2012 Rocky Bleier
2013 Bill Walton
2014 Joe Theisman
2015 Herschel Walker
2016 Robert Horry
2017 Roger Craig
2018 Fred Biletnikoff
2019 Keena Turner
The Shasta College Athletic Department would like to send out a big THANK YOU to the following business and community members for their generous support of the 2019 Celebrity Auction:
Allen & Sherry Shufelberger, Joe Gibson, Shasta Financial Insurance, Dutch Bros, Rita's Italian Ice, Joe Wyse, Skip & Elynne Vargas, Dave Hallagan, Seven Up of Chico/Redding, Mac-co Metal Buildings, Sharon & Alan Adkins, Shasta Orthopaedics & Sports Medicine, Redding Roofing Supply, Maxim Physical Therapy, Blach Beverage, SFI Insurance/George Peterson, PCSA Inc. Dr. Paul Mazur, Sierra Pacific Foundation, Shasta College Baseball, Virgil Woods, Status Code Inc, Crystal Hilton, DH Scott & Company, Win River, Redding Bank of Commerce, Ray Morgan Company, Tri Counties Bank, Redding Countertops, Redding Rancheria Tribal Council, Hat Creek Construction, Shasta College Football, Cross Petroleum, Burrito Bandito, Nello's, Holiday Harbor, Riverview Country Club, National Holistic Institute, Big O Tires, Kristy Lanham, Casey Fatch, Stacy Bartlett, Gary Burks, Coach Jenkinson, Eva Jimenez, Bob Brennon, Barbara Tyler, Brad Peek, Robert Toepp, The Thompson Family, Mark Tweedy
