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Senior Brandon Averill leads the UCLA baseball team this weekend against an Arizona State squad t

Most fledgling ballplayers grow up pitching into chain-link fences, fielding grounders off their garage doors, or constantly searching for the other half of a game of catch.

Senior third baseman Brandon Averill was luckier than that. Two years after Averill was born, the third baseman’s parents gave him a brother to play ball with.

“It was great knowing that I always had somebody that I could go to the field with and hit, or do something with every day,” Averill said of his brother, Erik. “I never had to pick up the phone and search for somebody.”

Both Averills continue to play baseball at the collegiate level. While Brandon has been a Bruin for the last four years, Erik decided to pitch for Arizona State.

The two Pac-10 teams will meet for the first time this coming weekend in a three-game series. Chances are that Brandon could stare down his brother from the batter’s box, though it would not be the first time he has done so.

“Last year when we went to ASU, I faced him in one at-bat,” Brandon said.

“And he hit me.

“He was trying to come inside to get me out, and the ball got away from him a little bit.”

Both Brandon and Erik enjoyed success growing up on the baseball diamond.

Brandon still cites his final high school game as one of his greatest athletic achievements. With Brandon at third and Erik starting on the hill, the Averill brothers led Villa Park High School to the 2000 CIF State Championship.

“Not only did we accomplish something that you play for the entire season,” Averill said. “But I did it with my brother. Playing at the same time as him in a game as important as that is something that most brothers don’t get to experience. It was unbelievable.”

Both Brandon and Erik have seen success beyond their CIF Championship.

Brandon, a four-year varsity player for Gary Adams’ baseball squad, holds a .311 lifetime batting average and has belted 21 round-trippers in his tenure at UCLA.

The senior did not truly emerge as a force in the Bruin lineup until his sophomore year, when he started 38 of the last 40 games at third base, posting a .310 average with six home runs.

After beginning his junior season as a pinch hitter, he hit .397 in Pac-10 competition, good enough for eighth in the conference. He also reached double-digits in home runs with 10.

Later in the 2003 season, Brandon became the first Bruin since Garrett Atkins in 2000 to hit for the cycle. He completed the baseball rarity on May 25 against Washington State.

Though never a standout player statistically, different attributes have made Brandon one of UCLA’s most valuable players.

Brandon’s relentless work ethic got him elected co-captain by his teammates in his senior year.

“I was honored to be selected co-captain,” he said. “I think that the guys feed off my work ethic, which is probably why I was selected. I am really lucky to have a co-captain like Chad Concolino, who can really get guys going with words and speeches. I just work hard and try to lead that way.”

Adams agrees with his team’s selection of Brandon as a co-captain.

“Brandon is a guy who is never down; he is either getting up or standing up.”

It’s a great attitude to have and that is why he has been successful his entire career. Brandon wants to win, and he will do anything he can to help the team. He is one of the best team players I have ever coached,” the 30-year coaching veteran said.

Whereas Brandon did not find stardom until late in his career, Erik was making headlines at ASU immediately.

After posting an 8-2 record with a 3.88 ERA as a freshman, Brandon’s younger brother was named a freshman All-American by Baseball America.

The sibling rivalry has been a positive experience for Brandon.

“Obviously, there is a lot of talking that goes on between us, especially now that we are directly competing,” Brandon said. “Christmas is always a fun battle.”

“It is pretty cool though,” he added. “Erik is one of my best friends. We talk all of the time because we can relate on a lot of different things.

“We both know how to compete, so we compete with each other. We set off and encourage each other more than we battle each other.”