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Briefs: Hernandez promoted

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Former UC Irvine baseball standout Brian Hernandez was promoted Thursday from Single-A Inland Empire to the Double-A Arkansas Travelers of the Texas League.

Hernandez, a two-time first-team All-Big West Conference third baseman who was the conference Defensive Player of the Year in 2011, went one for four in his Travelers’ debut on Thursday against the Springfield Cardinals.

Hernandez earned the promotion by hitting .292 with three home runs and 33 RBIs in 65 games and 240 at-bats with Inland Empire, the Los Angeles Angles of Anaheim’s California League affiliate based in San Bernardino.

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Hernandez, who won a Rawlings Division I Gold Glove award for his defense as a UCI senior, hit .341 with 32 RBIs for the Anteaters.

He was selected by the Angels in the 27th round of the 2011First-Year Player Draft.

— Barry Faulkner

Lions add guard

Myles Smith, who as a 5-foot-8 senior point guard led Mayfair High to the CIF Southern Section Division 2-A championship in 2011-12, will play collegiately for Vanguard University, Lions coach Rhett Soliday announced.

Myles averaged seven points, four assists and 2.7 rebounds per game for the Monsoons, who finished 27-6. Myles led the Lakewood-based school in three-pointers made with 43 and he shot 39.3% from beyond the arc.

He was a first-team All-Suburban League honoreee and was on the second team fo the Long Beach Press Telegram’s Dream Team.

“Myles is a fast and athletic guard who has a tremendous upside,” Soliday said in a statement. “We expect to come in as a freshman and push our other guards for playing time right away.”

— From staff reports

VU’s Young honored

Brandon Young, a senior baseball player at Vanguard University in 2012, has been named Academic All-American team for the college baseball division by the College Sports Information Directors of America.

Young, who led the Lions with a .381 batting average, hit five home runs, drove in 30 and scored 37 while stealing nine bases in 44 games as a senior.

He had a 3.81 grade-point average and was named VU’s Accounting Student of the Year.

He graduated with an accounting degree in May.

He also received scholar-athlete recognition by the NAIA and the Golden State Athletic Conference.

Young, a three-year standout at Vanguard, helped the Lions reach the NAIA opening-round tournament in 2010.

— From staff reports

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