By Mike London

mike.london@salisburypost.com

MOUNT ULLA — Teammates since their T-ball days, Omar Bautista and Juan Garcia will continue their baseball careers together as Catawba Valley Community College Redhawks.

“We really wanted to go somewhere together and we’re excited we’ll still be playing together,” Garcia said. “Omar is like my brother. With Omar by my side, I’m always confident. We can accomplish a lot together.”
The West Rowan standouts are joining a Hickory-based program that finished third in the recent D-II Junior College World Series in Enid, Okla. It was the second World Series trip for the Redhawks, and it’s possible Garcia and Bautista will help them make a few more.
Garcia is a third baseman while Bautista is a pitcher. Both are making their Rowan County American Legion debuts this summer and both already have proven they will be impact players at Newman Park.
Bautista turned in a sensational senior season on the mound for West Rowan. He was 9-1 with two saves for the 20-7 South Piedmont Conference champs. He was 6-0 in SPC games and 2-0 in 3A state playoff games. His only loss came to 4A Ardrey Kell in a high-powered Easter tournament.
Bautista was named SPC Pitcher of the Year in a tough field that included Hickory Ridge fireballer Collin Sprinkle. Bautista also will receive the fifth annual Patrick Snider Memorial Award as Rowan County Pitcher of the Year.
Bautista was a tough-to-hit but frequently unlucky pitcher as a sophomore and junior, but he found a higher level as a senior under new coach Seth Graham. He was so dominant that he eliminated the luck factor.
“Hard work in the offseason made me stronger and it made our team stronger,” Bautista said. “We scored enough runs and guys played great defense behind me. I didn’t have to do anything great to win games. I just had to go out and do my job.”
Bautista’s ERA was 1.56, but his most jaw-dropping stat was allowing just nine walks in 72 innings while striking out 65. He didn’t walk a single batter in his last six outings.
“He was the most consistent pitcher I’ve ever been associated with at any level,” Graham said. “Every time he took the mound, we had a chance to win and the team played with a lot of confidence.”
Garcia stood out with his bat and glove (two errors in 125 chances at first and third base) for the Falcons. He led Rowan County with four homers while batting .324 with 17 RBIs in a competitive league.
A shoulder injury he dealt with early in the season affected his overall offensive stats.
“I was upset about the shoulder and it limited me to DH and first base early on, but I was much healthier later in the season,” Garcia said.
Garcia did almost as much as Bautista to make the Falcons SPC champions. Graham went down the schedule and listed the SPC games that a powerful swing by Garcia turned in West Rowan’s favor.
“Juan’s home run puts us ahead against Cox Mill,” Graham said. “He gets the go-ahead RBI against Hickory Ridge. He puts up by a run with his homer against South Rowan and he ties the Carson game that we went on to win with a homer. That’s four really big games he won for us.”
Garcia always has been a solid contact hitter, but he added more power as a senior and he earned his reputation as a clutch hitter.
“I did a better job of situational hitting as a senior,” Garcia said. “I just tried to clear my mind and get the job done. When you come through in the clutch, that’s a really good feeling.”
Garcia was All-SPC and he is the third baseman on the All-Rowan County team.
“Juan and Omar are guys we can’t replace,” Graham said. “But we’re proud they’re moving on to the college level.”