CSUN Baseball Great Lyman Bostock Doc Debuting Sunday

A new documentary is premiering Sunday on the MLB network about the life of late baseball star Lyman Bostock, who had a successful run at CSUN, moved onto the majors, but was tragically killed just four years into a promising career, the Daily News reports.

Originally from Alabama, Bostock played two years at CSUN, known back then as San Fernando Valley State, and batted .344 as a junior and .296 as a senior. He was also a member of the Matadors team that finished second in the 1972 Division II College World series.

After his college days, he was signed by the Minnesota Twins and eventually played for the California Angels. At one point he was the highest earning free agent.

Bostock had a slow start in his final season, but by June he had recovered his form and batted .404 for the month.

But it all came to an abrupt end on Sept. 23, 1978. That evening, after a game against the White Sox in Chicago, Bostock went with his uncle to have dinner with family in Gary, Indiana. 

When they left, they gave a ride to friend and her sister, Barbara Smith. They were being followed by her estranged husband, Leonard Smith who got out of his car when everyone had stopped at the intersection and opened fire.

Bostock was fatally shot in the temple.

"“It’s hard,” former coach Bob Hiegert told the Daily News. “He’s a special young man. He was 100 percent, whatever he did. He was a kick. If Lyman was without a smile, it was because he was in a competitive situation.

Click here to read more about Bostock's life.

The documentary, The Lyman Bostock Story, is premiering Sunday at 7 p.m. on the MLB Network.