Pacifica’s Joey Ortiz keeps his Major League dreams alive after being drafted by Orioles

Joey Ortiz gets ready on defense playing this year for New Mexico State. (Photo courtesy Chris Hook, New Mexico State athletics, For OC Sports Zone)

Former Pacifica High and New Mexico State baseball star Joey Ortiz got the call he was hoping for this week and his dream of playing in the Major Leagues is very much alive.

Ortiz, who completed his junior year at New Mexico State, was selected in the fourth round (108th overall) in the Major League draft by the Baltimore Orioles and said he plans to sign with the team. He’s waiting for a team representative to find out when the signing will take place.

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Draft day was one Ortiz will always remember.

“Me and my family kind of just waited at home and kind of just watched it and sat by the phone and we got the call,” Ortiz told OC Sports Zone.

Ortiz, who began playing baseball when he was 4, said he has been dreaming of playing Major League baseball for many years, so he was excited to get the phone call from the Orioles.

“My heart kind of dropped a little bit,” he said. “I figured the call was for the draft, but it could have been for something else. I got really excited and as soon as I found out that the Orioles were going to take me, it was a sigh of relief.”

Ortiz’s mother, his brother Matthew, who will be a senior at Pacifica in the fall and Joey Ortiz’s girl friend gathered at the Ortiz home in Garden Grove to follow the draft.

Ortiz had quite a junior season at New Mexico State. He was named the Western Athletic Conference player of the year after batting .422, third in the nation. He led the nation in hits with 106, in runs scored with 85 and triples with 10.

Now, Ortiz is planning to begin the trek which he hopes will lead him to the Major Leagues one day.

“I’m going to speak with my advisor and figure out where they’re going to be sending me for the short season or low A or wherever they send me,” Ortiz said. “Just figure that out and go from there and sign my contract.”

Ortiz said he didn’t know that the Orioles would draft him.

“Not really, it was kind of a waiting game to see what teams would pick me,” he said. “I had enough teams who were interested but it was just kind of a waiting game to see who would finalize the pick.”

Ortiz said he will be getting more information on signing details later.

The selection of Ortiz made the Pacifica High baseball community and Coach Mike Caira proud. Caira remembers Ortiz as a hard-worker and a humble person who dreamed of playing in the Major Leagues but never boasted about his chances.

Ortiz batted .417 in his senior year with Pacifica and wound up with a school record six triples and left with the career record of 10 triples. Both records still stand.

“I’m super excited; Joey is a special young man and a great, great kid,” Caira said. “He’s worked very hard and it gives me being a coach real happiness to see that the fruits of all his hard work is starting to pay off because he’s been going at it hard for the past three years in college and then the four years in high school.”

Caira was one of the first to congratulate about being selected. Caira also got to visit with him the next day after he was drafted.

“His younger brother Matthew (a senior) still plays for us, so the next day he was at our (summer) game talking with the guys,” Caira said. “He’s around, he talks to the guys and he’s around and being supportive of the program and supportive of his brother and supportive of me. He’s just a very humble person and not conceited or too good for anyone.”

Caira said he followed Ortiz throughout this college career but noticed he took his game to another level this year at New Mexico State.

“All three years have been tremendous but this past year really skyrocketed his stock,” Caira said.

“By hitting triples, he was getting to the opposite field which made me know that he was squaring balls up,” Caira said.

Caira and the rest of the Pacifica baseball community will be rooting for Ortiz, the hard-working player who they say always has time to help and encourage others.

Ortiz said he will be proud to be part of the Orioles organization. and excited about the opportunity.

“I love it, they’re giving me an opportunity to join the organization and showcase what kind of player I am,” he said.

-Tim Burt, OC Sports Zone; timburt@ocsportszone.com

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