¡La voy a tocar!

With that piercing yell down the third base line, Andy Rodriguez has managed to communicate what most teams do through complicated hand gestures: “I’m laying down a sacrifice bunt!”

Blunt, yes, but all the more effective. Due to several teammates that herald from Miami and speak Spanish, Andy is able to skip the hand symbols that managers and ballplayers have been using for a century.

“Andy loves to do this. If we’re on third base and he’s up to bat, and he wants to squeeze bunt the runner home, he’ll say something in Spanish,” teammate Bobby Alvarez, mass communication senior, said.

He’s allowed to do so because few teams have players who are fluent in Spanish. Loyola, on the other hand, has several of them.

It’s a camaraderie that few teams share. Andy and Bobby both herald from the Miami area, along with English sophomore Chuck Benach and marketing senior Jerry Campos.

“We’ve known each other [since] before we got to Loyola,” said communications senior Rodriguez, who plays shortstop. “It sounds kind of corny, but we all wear wristbands. We all wear a band that in black and white says 305 – Miami’s zip code.”

But the Miami kids have more in common than just origin and accessories.

“You can always tell, without even knowing, who the kids from Miami are on the team,” Andy said. “The personality, always talking about the things like the Marlins and the Heat. Things like that.”

Even more evident is the cohesive approach the team takes, especially Andy’s part in it. His unquestionable leadership backs a team that plays solid, fundamental baseball.

“It’s not about big power hitters, it’s more about moving runners over,” Andy said. “Drag bunts, sacrifice bunts. That’s what we focus on more.”

Alvarez agrees. “Long ball brings people into the seats, but you’ve gotta be able to hit, to bunt, to feed the ball to succeed at the higher level.”

Rodriguez’s stats impress in spite of his unselfish style. While leading the team in bunts, he’s atop in batting average (.331) and runs batted in (26). Not bad for a guy just wanting to “move ’em over.”

Look to last week’s series against LSU-Shreveport for an example of his talent, when the team took two out of three games from the Pilots. Andy was sublime at the plate, going 7-for-15 with three RBI’s and 2 runs, all while historically gathering his 200th hit in the final at bat of the series. He’s only the third Wolfpacker to reach that benchmark.

“It was one of my personal goals, so it feels great,” he said.

But it’s not in Rodriguez’s nature to get wrapped up in personal accomplishments. In fact, dating back to his hometown days, the unglamorous job of defense has been his primary concern.

“In Miami, it’s so concentrated on defense. You spend hours on it, fielding ground balls and pop flys. You maybe spend 45 minutes on hitting.”

The training, Coach Doc Beeman believes, paid off.

“Andy is the best shortstop in the league and as good as any we have played against this year. His hands and feet are as good as or better than any shortstop I have coached,” said Beeman.

Even in the dugout Rodriguez’s presence is felt. When tempers flair or things go awry, he’s there to cool the situation.

“Andy is the leader of the team,” Alvarez said. “He keeps everyone in check. He’s the quiet one, but he’ll get in your face if you miss a sign or do something wrong.”

“I try to calm everyone down when things get out of control,” Rodriguez said. “Alvarez is more 115 mph all the time. Sometimes I have to pull him aside.”

That mainstay in the locker room will soon be moving on to bigger and better things. Andy looks forward to graduation, where he hopes to capitalize on his secondary education teaching minor, perhaps going into coaching or news production. He’s also focused on his upcoming marriage to Loyola student Cristina Rivera, mass communication senior.

“I’m excited to graduate, about getting married in a year, but I’m going to miss baseball a lot. We play because we enjoy playing, doing the best we can,” he said.

But all Loyola can hope to do is move forward and improve on its current 16-29 record next year. Either way, 2007 has been an exciting year despite the team’s struggles, culminating in a TV appearance against Southern University (Baton Rouge) on Cox Sports Television on April 17, in which Rodriguez amassed three hits in a 9-8 loss.

And while the team’s relative youth does suggest an improvement next year, Loyola will nevertheless miss Rodriguez’s bat, leadership and – as strange as it may sound – Spanish tongue.

Chad Bower can be reached at [email protected].