Rafael Neda is the future of the UNM baseball team.
The sophomore is a native of Obregon, Mexico, where he grew up playing baseball.
"I had great coaches when I was younger," he said. "And I think that helped for my love of baseball."
Neda, the right-handed catcher for the Lobos, played high-school ball at Amphitheater High in Tucson, Ariz.
There, Neda earned All-American and All-State honors in 2007.
Neda was also named the Arizona Kino Conference Player of the Year, Catcher of the Year and All-Southern Player of the Year while playing at Amphitheater High.
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Head coach Ray Birmingham said Neda could become one of the best players to put on a Lobo jersey.
"To me, he has tremendous potential," Birmingham said. "He has moments, but I think he can be a lot better offensively and defensively. People see his size and are astonished to hear he is a freshman All-American. He throws and catches pretty well, plays hard and is a great kid. He can be a lot better than he has been, though. I think he can be great."
During his first season with the Lobos, Neda put up impressive offensive numbers. Neda started 49 of UNM's 50 games and had 198 plate appearances.
He finished the season batting .323 with 64 hits.
Of Neda's 64 hits, 17 were doubles, three were triples and six were home runs. Neda also had 45 RBIs.
"I think I gained a lot of experience last season in my ability to throw and catch and just doing it
every day," Neda said. "I think that it also helped me to gain a lot of baseball knowledge to help me for this upcoming year."
Over the summer, Neda competed in the Jayhawk League in Kansas, but his playing time was cut short due to surgery on a broken finger.
However, Neda is healthy and competed in UNM's Cherry-Silver Fall Baseball Classic.
Neda was a member of the Silver Slammers team but didn't play any innings as catcher. He spent time tuning up his offensive game in the designated hitter position.
He had a quiet series, but he said the scrimmage was just preparation for the season.
"I think we get a taste of what we will look like for the season," Neda said. "It will help us prepare mentally and physically for the season. It will show our mistakes, (so) we can fix them by the start of the season."
