2 players commit to Lobos
Hobbs pitcher/infielder Pacheco, La Cueva’s Ware pick New Mexico
Ray Birmingham keeps rolling up recruiting miles on his pickup and filling the bed with commitments from New Mexico baseball players. Tyrin Pacheco, a pitcher/infielder from Hobbs, is the latest to secure a spot on the Lobo express. The rising senior will bring a remarkable level of versatility to Albuquerque.
“I’m a switch-hitter and a switch-pitcher,” Pacheco said. “I can hit from either side and I can pitch with either hand — but my best position is shortstop.”
Pacheco is one of five in-state players to commit to UNM this summer. The Lobos signed La Cueva’s Richard Ware and brothers Karl and Benjamin Koerper from Las Cruces’ Centennial High — all of whom will be eligible next season — and picked up verbal commitments from Pacheco and Goddard’s Cameron Stevenson, who will be prep seniors in 2017-18.
NCAA rules prohibit coaches from commenting on unsigned recruits like Pacheco and Stevenson. Birmingham merely confirmed UNM is recruiting them.
But the veteran coach never misses a chance to say how much he enjoys bringing in-state players into his program.
“Playing here means a little more to New Mexico kids,” he said. “They don’t always get noticed by other programs and they play with a chip on their shoulder. I like that. If
they can help us, I want ’em.”
Pacheco would be the first player from Hobbs to join the Lobos since Birmingham migrated to Albuquerque from New Mexico Junior College. Pacheco remembers attending Birmingham’s NMJC baseball camps as a youngster.
“I’ve known Coach B for a long time,” Pacheco said. “I’m pumped to get a chance to play for him.”
Pacheco worked primarily as a right-handed pitcher for Hobbs High School last season, compiling a 6-5 record with a 1.46 earned-run average and 74 strikeouts (15 walks) in 72 innings. He combines a low-90s fastball with changeup, slurve (slider/ curveball) and a sinker.
Pacheco officially got on UNM’s radar during a showcase tournament last fall and he visited the campus in November. Pacheco, who plans to study mechanical engineering, came away impressed.
“I loved the campus and just felt like that’s where I wanted to be,” he said.
Pacheco hopes to get a chance to “switch pitch” at some point during his UNM career. He has an “ambidextrous” glove that allows him to pitch with either hand without changing equipment.
“It’s pretty fun to see the expression on a hitter’s face when he realizes I changed hands,” Pacheco said. “My high school coach hasn’t let me pitch lefty in a game, but I keep working on it just in case.”
Birmingham’s plans for Pacheco remain to be revealed, but he said he’s looking forward to having the versatile Ware on his roster this fall. Ware, who signed a national letter of intent during the spring, had a monster senior season in La Cueva’s run to a Class 6A state title. He hit .527 with six home runs and 44 RBIs.
“He’s a baseball player,” Birmingham said. “He can hit, he’s got a strong arm, he’s got range; I think he can play just about anywhere.”
Birmingham said Ware’s on-field intensity reminds him of another New Mexican who went on to play at UNM: shortstop Dalton Bowers, who played shortstop at Volcano Vista and NMJC before playing with the Lobos from 2015-16.
“The way Ware moves and gets rid of the ball reminds me of Dalton Bowers,” Birmingham said, “but what I like even better is they’re both fierce competitors. That’s what really won me over.”
UNM previously announced three other New Mexicans as part of their 2017 signing class: Rio Rancho shortstop Garrett Gouldsmith, Cibola right-handed pitcher Jack White and Santa Teresa catcher Drew Marrufo.