Cal first baseman David Cooper, a former Tokay High standout, is second on the team with a .444 battering average and leads the Bears with five doubles and four home runs. (Courtesy photo)

A 'major' swing?

Former Tokay star Cooper has been a big hit in college, and the pros could be next

Barry Bonds, Dave Magadan and Terry Francona.

That's the company David Cooper joined when he strung together seven consecutive hits at the College World Series last year, matching the mark Francona set in 1980 and falling one short of the record shared by Magadan and Bonds.

The Tokay High graduate will be the first to tell you his hit streak as a freshman with Cal State Fullerton was simply "the luck of the draw," and that there were plenty of fluke hits fortunate to find an opening.

"It could happen to anybody," the lefty said.

Believe him if you want, or chalk up his comments to a show of modesty, but Cooper's ability to hit a baseball is no fluke. And it's his talent at the plate that could have him sharing something more than a hit streak with Bonds, Magadan and Francona: A lengthy Major League Baseball career.

"I think he's going to make it all the way," said Tokay baseball coach Aaron Misasi, who calls Cooper the best all-around hitter he's ever seen. "He'll hit for four hours until his hands bleed, if you let him."

So what is he capable of at the major-league level?

"I think he can be one of those guys who hits .300 with 25 home runs and 100 RBIs," the coach said matter-of-factly.

Put those numbers up for a career and you're talking possible Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, no pun intended; high expectations for a just-turned-20-year-old who has never stepped into the batter's box as a professional.

Not that he hasn't had the option to collect a signing bonus and start working his way up in the minor leagues. It's just that a college education is something Cooper and his parents feel is very important. And that's a big reason why Cooper transferred from Fullerton, a perennial baseball powerhouse currently ranked eighth in the nation, to Cal, a far less distinguished program, in the offseason.

"(It's about) the academics," said Cooper, noting that Cal was his second choice coming out of high school, behind Fullerton. "I'm trying to get into the business school at Cal and they offer a lot more classes that Fullerton doesn't offer."

While Cal doesn't offer the recent track record for baseball success that Fullerton does, Cooper is intrigued by the idea of turning the Bears' program around.

"That is a personal goal of mine," Cooper said. "To be one of the guys to help the program turn the corner from a solid program to an elite program.

"Oregon State is the perfect example: They had one banner year and turned into a world series team the last two years in a row. It only takes one good year to get a program going."

While Cal is coming off a three-game sweep at the hands of rival Stanford, falling to 7-10 on the season, Cooper has done his part as the anchor of the Cal lineup.

Playing first base and batting in the 3-hole, Cooper is second on the team with a .444 batting average and leads the Bears with five doubles, four home runs and a .759 slugging percentage.

Last week, the Stockton native was named the Pac-10 Player of the Week, hitting .476 with three home runs, two doubles and eight RBIs in five games.

With the season only a few weeks underway, those numbers have already begun to top last year's statistics, when Cooper hit .305 with two homers and nine doubles as Fullerton's designated hitter.

Even in high school, Cooper had an uncanny ability to hit to all parts of the field, something that's separated him from his peers. But he says his improved aptitude for recognizing different pitches is what's going to allow him to reach the next level.

"I keep trying to hone those skills," Cooper said. "The hardest part I had last year was adjusting to the college game — the curveballs and changeups. Every time you move up a level, the game gets faster. Typically, that's how most freshmen are: Most can hit a good fastball, but the ones who turn into really good players are the ones who can sit back on offspeed pitches."

Defensively, Cooper feels he's making big strides at first base, but at 6-foot-1 and 195 pounds, Cooper is much smaller than the bulking mammoths who tend to dominate the position in today's MLB.

That could eventually mean a move to left field, but Cooper knows that's something over which he has no control. But he also knows the way he swings a bat could make everything else fall into place.

"If you hit," Cooper says, "you'll force your way into the lineup no matter where you are."

First published: Tuesday, March 6, 2007