Monday, April 13, 1998 | 9:06 a.m.
Standing 6-foot-3, weighing 210 well-chiseled pounds and hailing from the small Pennsylvania town of Phoenixville, Creighton Gubanich would seem to be the prototypical Penn State linebacker, right down to the name.
Which begs the question: How did Gubanich, a former all-state football player good enough to be considered for the famed Big 33 high school football all-star game, manage to escape the grasp of Joe Paterno and wind up playing professional baseball instead?
"I had some schools interested in recruiting me in football," Gubanich said after going 3-for-3 with a home run and three RBIs in the Stars' 9-2 Pacifc Coast League victory over Calgary Sunday afternoon at Cashman Field.
"Schools like UCLA, Nebraska, Penn State and Tulsa all contacted me. But they all asked me which sport I like better, football or baseball. When I said baseball the football offers started to fizzle out."
Phoenixville, Pa., located about 30 miles west of Philadelphia, is in the heart of one of the nation's most fertile prep football recruiting areas. However, it also produces some pretty fair baseball talent, too.
"Andre Thornton went to my high school," Gubanich said of the former Cleveland Indians' slugger. "But our claim to fame is Mike Piazza."
Piazza was a senior when Gubanich was a ninth-grader. Although they never played high school baseball together, they did play in some instructional leagues at the same time.
"Mike says he's from Norristown," says Gubanich. "But he played at Phoenixville. I talk to him whenever we see each other back home."
Unlike his former high school classmate, the 26-year-old Gubanich has yet to make it to the major leagues. And he certainly hasn't rejected any $80 million contract offers lately.
"I'd give anything just to get the big-league minimum," says Gubanich, who is playing for his third triple-A team in the past year.
Piazza has been the object of boos in Dodger Stadium recently for his well-publicized demand -- a contract in the neighborhood of $100 million.
"He certainly doesn't need the money," says Gubanich. "His family is filthy rich. But it's a business and he's just trying to get what he deserves in the current market."
Although it has been fashionable for many in the L.A. media to paint Piazza as just another spoiled, overpaid baseball player, Gubanich has seen a much more positive side of the Dodger catching star.
"I run this catching clinic back home and he comes by sometimes and helps out," Gubanich said. "He'll stop by and talk to the kids. When someone like that comes in an talks to them, they're just in awe."
Gubanich certainly has the size and strength (15 homers in just 277 at-bats last season) to one day join Piazza in the big leagues. According to Las Vegas manager Jerry Royster, he also throws well enough to play in the major leagues one day.
So what does Gubanich need to do with the Stars to make the next big step to the major leagues?
"He has to do a more solid job as a catcher and game caller," said Royster. "And those are things he's capable of doing here.
"He's never been a regular catcher at the triple-A level before. He's always had to sit down for long periods of time. But that's not going to happen here. Mandy (Romero) is our No. 1 catcher and will catch three games in a row. Then Creighton will catch the next two games.
"Creighton's job now is do his job so well that the people in San Diego believe he should be the No. 1 catcher here, not Mandy."
Royster was especially pleased with Gubanich's game Sunday.
"What a complete game Creighton Gubanich had," Royster said. "He was outstanding on offense and on defense. The home run was just gravy. He had a nice, quiet game as a catcher and handled all four pitchers well. Now he's got to come back and do it again (tonight). If he gets a couple of singles on top of that, that's great."
Gubanich, who also was a standout swimmer while growing up, is confident that one day there will be two players from Phoenixville, Pa., catching in the major leagues.
"All I'm looking for is a chance and Jerry is giving me one here," he said. "I know I can play at the major league level."
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