The Common Interest Management Gael Spotlight is a monthly feature story about Saint Mary's Athletics and a behind-the-scenes look at the Gaels.
 
MORAGA, Calif. – Saint Mary's Baseball infielder Kyle Velazquez has had a similar experience to what many athletes do when they make the jump to the collegiate level, and has been a shining example for future athletes who make the same jump.
 
"Coming in as a freshman you really kind of get punched in the mouth a little bit," Velazquez said. "It's a big adjustment. You have to be able to manage your time, do your own laundry, make your own food. You have to find that find that fine line of when it's time to do work on the field, the classroom, and socialize."
 
Part of that experience as a student-athlete is learning to lead, whether on a team or in their professional life, and there are certain traits every leader must have in a team setting.
 
"Being able to lead by example is a critical trait for a leader," Velazquez noted. "Anyone can say what you want to hear, but if you're not doing it yourself, they're not going to buy into it. If they see you do it, then they will follow you.
 
"Not everyone on your team can be leaders. You have some guys on the team who know how to lead, and the rest of the guys have to learn how to follow. Not everyone can be a leader, that's not going to work out, if everyone's a follower, that's not going to work out. You have to have that balance which relates to professional life in the future."
 
The junior from Chino Hills, Calif. had a very successful career at Ayala High School and fell in love with the game almost as soon as he could walk while watching the Dodgers with his dad, throwing a ball off the wall and fielding it while acting out what he saw on TV.
 
Velazquez also had to adjust to the jump to college on the field as well. But that was something less foreign to him than adjusting to life off the field at the collegiate level.
 
"Growing up I always played up a division," Velazquez said. "I was always undersized compared to everyone else, but over the years that helped me build up some toughness and gave me the ability to hang with older players. I was always one of the better players on my team growing up and got a lot of playing time. But when I first got here, I didn't see the field for a while, so that was an adjustment."
 
His advice to incoming freshman as he leads by example? "Do not procrastinate," Velazquez added. "It will get into a big hole that will be tough to get out of."
 
Learning to lead and function in a team environment is great preparation for his professional goals after his time at Saint Mary's is done.
 
"My goal after baseball is to be a firefighter," Velazquez said. "I'll go to EMT school over the summer, and then go into the fire academy. I always liked helping people and I think that's where that desire comes from. There wasn't one moment in my life that made me think, 'I want to be a firefighter.'"
 
Other advice from Velazquez for student-athletes new to the collegiate level is to set short and long-term goals.
 
"We have an app that head coach Greg Moore introduced us to called 'Sevwins,' where we set our weekly goals that we want to accomplish," Velazquez said. "But for long-term goals, at the beginning of the semester I like to set my own goals, write them down, and put them on my mirror. I see that every day and that's what I'm working towards, it's not going to come right away, it's something that will come over time, but by setting and achieving those weekly goals you'll eventually get to those long-term goals if you stay steady with it."
 
He also strongly recommends being a Gael and relishes the opportunities being a student-athlete in the Saint Mary's community provides.
 
"It's a family feel," Velazquez added. "You get to know a lot of great people and I love the road trips. We're with each other as a team away from everyone else. You're with your best friends, all together with a common goal of winning a game, it's like a work-vacation combo. Being on a team creates a network of people to help each other with our school work and in my social life."
 
Saint Mary's Baseball starts up their 2022 campaign on Friday, February 18 at UC Davis at 2:30 p.m. and will play their first home game of the season against the Aggies on Sunday, February 20 at 1:00 p.m.
 
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