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Thursday, April 10, 2008

Monarch Lives For Baseball

By Harold Smith
Mountain View Telegraph
    Russell Hartshorn can hit the ball. The East Mountain Little League product has smacked five home runs and has a .535 batting average this season for the Manzano High baseball team as of this past weekend. He had a 3-for-3, three-RBI performance during the Monarchs' 8-7 District 5-5A win at Rio Grande on Saturday.
    "We've had some tough times in recent years," said Hartshorn, Manzano's 5-foot-9, 185-pound senior team captain and starting first baseman. "But we've been working really hard. We get along well. We're very tight. And we have fun."
    Right now, Hartshorn, a third-team all-state selection in 2007 and a first-team all-district pick the past two years, is concentrating on helping his team make the state playoffs. It helps that he has already mapped out his post-prep plan.
    "I actually already signed with El Paso Community College on a baseball scholarship," said Hartshorn, who has "around a 4.0" grade-point average at Manzano and expects to pursue an engineering degree. "It was during the early signing period after Christmas break. I liked the coach, and I know some of the guys from down there."
    That means Hartshorn will soon be leaving the nest. He and his parents live in the Juan Tomas area.
    "He works real hard at playing baseball, and his schoolwork is excellent," said his father, T. Hartshorn, who played for Mile High Little League before undergoing Tommy John elbow surgery as a 13-year-old. "We're really pleased with him.
    "He's a good boy," his father added. "I can say that now. I told him, 'You're 18. Now it's up to you.' ''
    Hartshorn's father watches his son's games from beyond the outfield fence.
    "It's better that way for everyone," said his father, who was a linebacker for Eldorado High back in the day. "It keeps me from using a curse word in front of everybody. I really hope they make it to state this year. I think they have a chance."
    Russell didn't have to beg his father to play catch with him.
    "My dad is like my older brother in some ways," Hartshorn said. "We would hit Wiffle balls all day long."
    Mary Hartshorn is Russell's mother.
    "My mom keeps the book in the stands," he said. "She's always been a part of it. My family has always been involved in sports."
    Most of his friends are Manzano baseball players.
    "Nick (Nelsen), he's my best buddy," Hartshorn said. "We just hang out together. Most of the time, we just play baseball. Sometimes we go four-wheeling. I live pretty far back off South 14 on a dirt road. I wouldn't want to live anywhere else.
    "But baseball is my life," Hartshorn continued. "That's what I do, that's what I think about 24-7. I don't usually have any time for anything else."
    Harold Smith can be reached by phone at 823-7104 or by e-mail at hsmith@mvtelegraph.com.