Athlete of the Issue: Felix Rosario

%28Photo+Courtesy+of+Colin+Boyle%29

(Photo Courtesy of Colin Boyle)

By Morgan Alexander

From little league to high school city champions, baseball player Felix Rosario, Div. 750, has been through it all.
Lane’s Varsity second baseman started playing at the age of five.

“Everyone in my family played the game and my dad introduced me to the sport,” Rosario said.

He followed his new found passion to a few park district teams. There, Rosario officially fell in love with the sport. He then continued to travel teams such as Illinois Indians and Team DeMarini.

“I’ve played multiple sports but baseball has always been the number one sport for me,” he said.

After completing two years at Lane’s Academic Center, he jumped at the opportunity to be on the baseball team freshman year. As a freshman, Rosario got pulled up to varsity.

Being one of the youngest on a varsity sport can be intimidating, however, good technique and skill isn’t defined by age. Rosario’s constant hard work and dedication to the sport made this opportunity possible

No matter what level he plays at, Rosario believes he always feels as if there’s room for improvement.

“I had very high expectations of myself and I think with that I brought a lot of pressure onto myself,” Rosario said.

He continues to push his limits and better his ability as a player.

“I try to find a way to get better every day and improve and continue progressing in my career,” Rosario said.

One of Rosario’s captains this year, Tim Eiden, Div. 759, has been in the program with him for the past four years. Eiden describes Rosario as a “phenomenal” player with strong leadership skills.

“Whenever we need a clutch hit, he’s there,” Eiden said. “He’s always ready, he’s always excited for the game, and he’s always encouraging everyone on the field because he’s a leader and that’s what he does.”

Eiden continued to explain that more than being a team player on the field, Rosario has proved himself to be good friend, too. Rosario and Eiden are close on the field since Eiden is right next to Rosario at first base, and are close off the field at lunch and after school.

The baseball team’s season officially started March 13. Since then, they have had six games, winning two of them.

Rosario is playing his final season at Lane. Although extremely excited for the season, it will definitely be bittersweet.

“The thing I’ll miss most about our team is just our togetherness,” Rosario said. “The amount of genuine fun we have. We genuinely love being around each other and playing together, getting better together.”