Big Week for Palisades Alums

Between Major League Baseball’s Opening Day and the NCAA’s Final Four, there was plenty to keep sports fans busy last week. And two former youth athletes from Pacific Palisades were in the middle of it all.   In baseball, Detroit Tigers left fielder and designated hitter Brennan Boesch, who played in the Pacific Palisades Baseball Association and attended Harvard-Westlake, got his season off to a resounding start. Through Monday, he was hitting .500 after three games, including a 4-4 performance with a home run and 4 RBIs in the Tigers’ 10-7 win at Yankee Stadium on Sunday.   In 2010, Boesch’s sensational first half, where he hit .342 with 12 home runs, made him a leading Rookie of the Year candidate. He couldn’t keep up that pace, eventually finishing with a .256 average, 14 homers and 67 RBIs.   All signs point to Boesch being able to get at least as many at bats as last year (462), as Detroit splits his time between the outfield and DH.   In addition to Boesch, former Palisades High basketball star Steve Kerr took center stage for the Final Four, when he worked as a CBS analyst for last Saturday’s Virginia Commonwealth-Butler and Kentucky-Connecticut semifinal games and Monday night’s title game between Connecticut and Butler.   Kerr, who typically works as an analyst alongside Marv Albert for NBA games on TBS and TNT, worked the entire NCAA tournament.   First, he covered the opening-round games of his alma mater, Arizona, as they defeated Memphis and Texas in Tulsa. Then, he worked the Southwest regional semifinals and finals in San Antonio, including VCU’s 71-63 win over Kansas, regarded to be the biggest upset of the tournament.   By most accounts, Kerr’s presence in the CBS telecasts was a welcomed addition, as he brought a level of knowledge, wit and understated professionalism to liven what had been regarded in recent years as a bland announcing team.   Kerr, who now lives in Rancho Santa Fe, will be covering the NBA playoffs for TBS and TNT.