Arizona Diamondbacks first baseman Alan Zinter catches a throw from the pitcher trying to tag out San Francisco Giants right fielder Jason Ellison at TEP on March 18, 2004.

 Aaron J. Latham / Arizona Daily Star

Alan Zinter, a first-round draft pick in 1989 after leading Arizona to the Pac-10 baseball championship, was inducted into the Hall of Fame on Friday. His high-profile teammates came to Tucson to honor him, including future MLB Hall of Famer Trevor Hoffman, former 20-game winner Scott Erickson, Gold Glove first baseman J.T. Snow and New York Mets hitting coach Kevin Long. After the ceremony, Long and UA softball coach Mike Candrea chatted at length; Candrea, probably the top hitting coach in college softball history, gets information whenever and wherever he can.

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