Future Of MHS Baseball

Whatever you do, do NOT step on the white line before a game.

Or you could chose a less ominous rule such as don’t wash your batting gloves for the entire season.

For me? Game’s tied. No one has scored in quite a while. I get up and go to the kitchen for a snack and roars of victory come screeching from the other room. I run back in. What did I miss? Just as I read the score across the top of the screen and am greeted with the fact that our team just score, the other team slaps the puck into our net and more screams fill the room. Only this time the screams are at me. They seriously want me to leave the room? Are they really asking me to go back to the kitchen… anywhere… just not THIS room?

Yes they are. And why? Most… okay ALL of them… believe that the reason we scored was because I left the room and the reason the other team answered back was because I returned.

I’m the jinx? Really? Sad, but true and I had to spend the rest of the series against the Penguins anywhere but in THAT room because it was the only way we could win. And there must be something to it, we swept the Pens.

Superstitions.  Every fan of every team has them. And every player has them too. Robert Lee Garcia, center fielder, didn’t wash his batting gloves for his entire freshman season with the Manchester High School Indians. Jake Oquendo, freshman pitcher and short stop for the Indians won’t touch that white line. What’s worse than stepping on that line? Dropping the game ball before the game begins. When I asked Jake what happens if you DO drop the game ball, a look of shock swept over his face as he replied “You get a new ball.” Duh.

And believe it or not, the number on your jersey can have a lot to do with your success as well. As long as it’s single digits, Robert, #2 this season, is safe. And Jake doesn’t always get his lucky #16 but when he does, his luck never runs out.

But is luck and superstition all these guys are made of? Certainly not. Both Jake and Robert spent many years before they even arrived at MHS working hard on their skills in other leagues. Babe Ruth and AAU, baseball teams that require discipline and hard work from their young players, helped these two amazing athletes prepare for what they would face as Indians. Since arriving at MHS, Robert says his pitching has improved and Jake likes the fact that practices teach different skills at different levels to all players. So whether you are an advanced player like these two, or a beginner, the baseball coaches at MHS will do what it takes to get you playing with the best of the best. Most people have heard “keep your eye on the ball” and it works. But there are other lesser known skills only a good coach can teach you like… plant your foot, swing your hips first and THEN swing the bat. Who knew? No wonder I tanked baseball in gym class all those years ago.

Jake is a dyed-in-the-wool Red Sox fan and Robert bleeds blue for the Yankees. There is a lot of razzing and joking around about whose MLB team is superior out there on their field during practices. However, both Jake and Robert agree on this: practice makes perfect. They know there are many younger athletes out there, perfecting their skills and hoping to someday be a Manchester High School baseball player. Their advice to the younger players out there is to never give up, don’t worry about their errors and practice all the time. MHS coaches place their players in positions where their skills are strongest, so beefing up those skills will ensure they get the position they love. Jake and Robert encourage the younger players to join AAU, Babe Ruth, Little League, American Legion or Illing baseball and start learning the basics and improving their skills with every practice.

And just as the little ones have their sights set on MHS, Jake has his set on UCONN or Boston University. Robert is shooting for UCONN or the University of Miami. No matter which college they end up attending, those teams will have some seriously great baseball players when they get there.

Sure, their freshman season is over, the stats are all in. The uniforms have been washed and put away, the bats are locked in storage, the diamonds no longer get painted and many players have their gloves stored away just the way they like them. As for Jake and Robert, their gloves will be in use for quite a bit longer. There really is no off season sitting around for these two. Between more baseball for both of them and spring football for Jake, there is little down time.

Jake Oquendo and Robert Lee Garcia are two names you really should get to know. They are the future of Manchester High School baseball.