Mack: Hey, boys and girls… We’re talking today with Chris Rivera who comes out of El Dorado High School in California. Currently, Chris projects out as the 3rd top SS in the draft, and is a solid first rounder if the draft was today. Chris, why don’t you start us off from the day you picked up a bat and worked your way to your freshman year.
Chris – Well, the first thing I grabbed
was a hockey stick, but that didn’t last long because I turned that hockey
stick into a baseball bat. My dad would roll newspaper up and turn them into
ducktape balls. I always played growing up with guys older than me to push
myself and to show everyone that I could keep up. Freshman year, I wanted to
show my brand new high school who I was, and that I was going to make a name
for myself starting from day one. I wanted to out hustle everybody, and I
wanted to be that guy who wanted the ball in tight situation. My dad has
prepared me all my life to be ready when my name is called and my mom always
been there to support me.
Mack – You hit the ‘finding of a prospect’
nail right on the head, Chris. You hop in your car are go into the stands where
8-11 year olds are playing and you start asking the people around you who
stands out above the rest.. Chris, you play in what we call a ‘baseball state’.
El Dorado is ranked 22nd in the state and 152nd
nationally. How has the competition been and what kind of heat did you see the
last games you played?
Chris - Our high school league has always
been known to bring out some good arms. Mark Trumbo who
started out pitched in our league at one point. We faced some really good
pitching from every single team. I tried to do my best, and our team eventually
got to some of these good pitchers.
Mack – You had a very special relationship
with Coach Serrano and your mother has ties to CSF. Tell us something Coach
taught you that you will take with you throughout your life.
Chris - He just taught me that nothing is
going to come easy, if you want things in life especially baseball, school is
going to be very important.
Mack – Chris, I want to jump ahead to the
2011-2012 season at El Dorado. Tell us about what went right and what went
wrong last season?
Chris - Well what went wrong was I didn’t
hit the way I wanted to, but did play
the defense I knew how to play and I pitched well for my team. As a team, we
did a lot of things right, and I couldn’t have been any more proud to be a part
of the team.
Mack:
Last question Chris. 2012-2013 will be the year that defines Chris
Rivera. What are you doing now to get ready for the best season ever?
Chris - I just need to continue getting
stronger and bigger, I’m prove my hitting, and just staying within myself. I
want to put myself in a position to succeed for years to come.
Mack – As we all do. We’ll leave it there
and check back with you at the mid-point of the season.
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