Teen POV: Playing Baseball in San Miguel

By Liam Stidham

Growing up in San Miguel, as anywhere in México, you are used to sports like fútbol, tennis, basketball and even pickleball. But one sport that we are missing out on is baseball. Since my dad is American I have always watched him turn on the TV and watch golf, basketball, American football and of course, baseball, so it was normal for me. But the thing is, I had never seen any baseball fields here at the time. 

One time I was just hanging out at my house on a Sunday afternoon and I saw my dad watching a baseball game, so rather than walking away and doing my own thing like I usually do, I decided to watch for a bit, and I enjoyed it! I thought to myself: "This actually looks kind of fun!" So I told my dad that I wanted to play baseball and he was glad. 

Asking around, my friend Iker told me about his baseball lessons at the Stirling Dickinson Baseball Field. I went with my mom and dad to check it out, and at the field I met the coach, Miguel Villafranco. Five minutes later, I was practicing.

At my training sessions I've seen a lot of kids practice their pitching with the coach's brother, working on their agility, endurance and ability to throw the ball. And in fact I want to be a pitcher myself, so it really helps out to train with him. Coach Miguel focuses on helping the kids with batting and catching, teaching them to take the game seriously and knowing that you must stay alert during the game, also with helping them have more comprehension of the game, by learning the rules and how to work with your team. It's pretty fun! I wanted to learn more about him coaching the kids that train there, so I went to ask him a few questions.

Miguel Villafranco started playing baseball in his early years of 1976. He was nine years old at the time, and he had barely discovered his passion for baseball. It ran in the family: almost all of his cousins and uncles played baseball. Even his dad! He played in little league teams like Los Tecos in Laredo, Los Aztecas in México City, Los Pingüinos in Tamaulipas and Los Legionarios. 

In 1985, he went to the legendary Baseball Academy Pastejé in the state of México where they discovered talents for the Mexican league and stayed there for some time. He maintains himself to stay semi-professional. At his age he is still part of a team from San Miguel that plays in Querétaro and other places like Celaya, León and Guanajuato.

Miguel started to coach kids 10 years ago along with his brothers Tomás and Rufino. His daughter Fátima coaches softball to girls. All of them are right there in the baseball field every time you go train.

When the kids started playing with the coach, he tried to help them join the Guanajuato state team, but they didn't have good results. However, when they were later invited to play in Querétaro, they did better. They won the Telmex Baseball Cup!  After that they went to the Nationals in Monterrey to compete against other little league teams.

Miguel and the kids have joined a club called Tiburones in Querétaro where sometimes they go to compete. There are various categories: 9-10 years, 11-12 years, 13-14 and 15-16. He coaches between 35 and 40 kids. Miguel has plans for them to play in amateur leagues or semiprofessional leagues. To him that would be a big satisfaction. Kids 9 to 13 years old usually train Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 4:15 to 6:00. Tuesdays and Thursdays he trains the kids that participate in the Sunday league of 15 and 16 year olds right here in San Miguel. Did I mention that he charges 10 pesos a week? Yeah, you read that right. Only ten pesos.

Coach Miguel's goal is to get some kids to get an opportunity of becoming a professional or semi- professional player, achieving their dream and competing to be the best. He and his family are trying to save up for a batting cage for all these kids to practice and improve, but due to the lack of resources they haven't been able to do that. So, they are hoping to get some sponsorships. I also want to make sure that a lot of kids find out about this, join and start to play and have fun!

Visit Beisbol y Softball San Miguel de Allende at Stirling Dickinson Stadium

Contact them: 449 592 5040

Liam Stidham is a twelve-year-old student in San Miguel de Allende