Huerta

The Grant Union baseball team has a new coach but a familiar face with RC Huerta taking the helm.

Also the head basketball coach for Grant Union, Huerta begins 2022 as the head coach for both programs at Grant Union High School. Huerta began as an assistant with the baseball team in 2019 and ascended to the role of head coach for the upcoming season following the departure of former head coach Doug Sharp.

After a four-win outing last season, Huerta is looking to get Grant Union back to its winning ways. The program has won four state championships since 1990. It is a past Huerta knows well, and is always mindful of.

“I played baseball in Redmond when I was a kid. My grandparents lived in Prairie, and I’d come here and get a chance to watch their teams. Looking at what they did and what they built, baseball culture was huge,” Huerta said.

“We’re proud of our baseball program (at Grant Union),” he added. “We were a little down last year with COVID and having not played much the year prior.”

Despite those challenges, Huerta sees a bright future for the Prospectors moving forward.

“I’d like to think that at any time we are going to win a championship. That’s always the goal: make the playoffs and get a championship under our belt.”

The coronavirus pandemic led to the cancellation of the state baseball playoffs for the past two years. When asked if he anticipates any setbacks or complications due to COVID this season,Huerta was optimistic that all those issues are largely over.

“I’d like to think not,” he said. “I know they have a need for officials, so if anybody reads this and wants to be an official, feel free to sign up for that.”

Huerta knows there will be challenges and adversity, but he thinks it isn’t anything his team can’t handle.

“I like to think glass half full. It’s sports, so adversity and challenges are gong to come up, but we’ll be able to face them and hopefully work through them without any game cancellations,” Huerta said.

Bringing a championship back to John Day will rest heavily on the leadership of the team’s three seniors and the development of its underclassmen.

“We have three seniors on the team,” Huerta said. “Mason Morris is a returning player. We have Colby Fell, who is also a returning player, and we have Parker Neault.”

Another factor in the success of the team will be navigating a tough schedule in 1A/2A Special District 7.

“Our league is always tough,” Huerta said. “I like to equate our league to the PAC-12. We like to beat up on each other.”

Despite the youth on the team and a tough league schedule, Huerta is optimistic that putting his fingerprints on the team will result in success.

“We’re going to try and carry on the tradition of baseball here in Grant County. I’d like to get us back into the win column and give ourselves an opportunity.”

The baseball team won its first-round state playoff game with Huerta as an assistant three years ago, and he’d like to return the team to a comparable level of success.

“In 2019 we got a chance to go play Kennedy and got out of the first round of the playoff. We didn’t quite get out of the second round (against Kennedy), but I’d like to get us back to that place.”

When asked if there is anything else he wanted people to know about his team, Huerta spoke of character and hard work.

“We’re going to have hard-working kids who are gong to hustle on and off the field. They’re gong to carry themselves with class and respect,” Huerta said.

“We’re gong to get dirty and play hard. We’re gong to have a good time while doing it.”

Huerta also hopes to see the community in the stands for home games throughout the season.

“Hopefully we get some more people out here to see this thing through so us and the softball program can make them proud,” he said.

Grant Union begins its 2022 campaign on March 17 at home against Umatilla. The game starts at noon.