SALEM — For its 30th year, the Salem State Series has hit a home run.
The university announced yesterday it has signed new Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine for its 2012 Speaker Series.
Better yet, it landed Hall of Fame sports journalist Peter Gammons to interview Valentine during his appearance here on Nov. 8 — right after the World Series.
"We're really, really excited," said Karen Cady, a spokeswoman for the university.
The timing, it seems, couldn't have been better.
"The equipment truck leaves Fenway Park on Saturday," Cady said. "I heard that on the radio this morning."
The university is just as excited about its kickoff speaker, TV newsman Anderson Cooper, host of CNN's nightly "Anderson Cooper 360."
He will speak on April 24.
Cooper has covered news events around the world for CNN, including last year's Arab Spring uprising in Egypt and the earthquakes in Japan and Haiti. He has moderated presidential debates and is coming here during the heart of the 2012 presidential campaign.
"We're really happy because he's been on our wish list for years," Cady said.
Valentine was hired in December as the 45th manager of the Red Sox, replacing Terry Francona, who led the Red Sox to two World Series championships but departed after the team's epic collapse in September.
Valentine has managed the Rangers and Mets and is a former ESPN commentator.
Gammons, a mainstay of ESPN and NESN's major league baseball coverage, was considered the best baseball beat writer in the country in the 1970s and '80s when he covered the Red Sox for The Boston Globe.
This is not the first time the Salem State Series has featured a personality from the world of sports. Past speakers include Celtic great Bill Russell and Patriots coach Bill Belichick.
Over 30 years, speakers have included former Presidents Bill Clinton and George H.W. Bush, newsmen Walter Cronkite and Mike Wallace, actors Robert Redford and Christopher Reeve, and world leaders Abba Eban and Benazir Bhutto.
Tickets for Valentine and Cooper go on sale today at 10 a.m. They may be purchased online at salemstateseriestickets.com or by calling the box office at 978-542-7555.
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