By ANDREW CRUM, Staff Writer
A lot has changed about Roy Sauceda during his time on Hanna’s varsity baseball team.
Sauceda got the nickname ‘Bones’ during his freshman year due to his 5-foot-2 and less-than-100-pound frame.
Now a senior, Sauceda is much taller and heavier, but he has become much more. Now he’s the Golden Eagles’ leader.
“At the end of last year, he knew he was going to have to fill in some big shoes being the captain, being the leader,” Hanna coach Eddie Garcia said. “He knew coming in (this year) we were going to have a young team. It was a big weight on his shoulders.”
It was a tough during the beginning of the season as Hanna struggled from one game to the next.
“He struggled early,” Garcia said. “He was trying too hard.”
Sauceda, not known as a vocal leader, knew he had to set the example and helped his team bond if the playoffs were going to even be a possibility.
“I try my best and never put my head down,” he said. “I tell them to keep their head up when they struggle and keep going. Being positive and giving it all you got.”
The senior captain became the glue that held the team together, and seniors, freshmen and everyone in between, bonded.
“The team’s chemistry is very good,” Sauceda said. “(I thought) there would be (a difference in) attitude, but everyone is really humble. I really like that.”
Garcia credits his second baseman/shortstop for getting the team through the first half of district play, which wasn’t easy at times.
“(Roy) was a big part, especially during the first part,” Garcia said. “He carried the team, picked up these guys when we were down, because we had some rough patches there.”
The Eagles also had to deal with the loss of sophomore Ivan Castillo, the slated starting shortstop who temporarily moved and was lost for eight district games. When Castillo finally returned to shortstop, moving Sauceda back to second base, the team just seemed to click, especially on defense.
“They solidified the defense,” Garcia said of the duo in the middle infield. “And during the second half, Roy came around. He’s hitting the ball hard, I knew he always had it in him and he became one of the team’s top hitters.”
Sauceda’s play has helped Hanna remain where it’s accustomed to be at year’s end, in the playoffs.
“We wanted to keep the tradition going, so we worked hard,” he said.
But the senior won’t take all the credit for helping the Eagles improve during the last half of the season.
“I thank God, and Coach Garcia, Coach Vega and all the coaches here, even my teammates,” he said. “I’m not perfect, I make mistakes. They bring me up and make me feel better. Even though I’m the leader, they still push me to become better.”
Garcia praised his senior leader, who played through back issues at times, to lead the team to four straight wins and the postseason.
“He works hard, plays hard on the field,” Garcia said. “He does the right things, makes good choices.
“There’s not enough good things to say about him.”
Andrew Crum covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him at (956) 982-6629 or via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @andrewmcrum.