SUMMARY
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ANTIQUE, Philippines – For many, playing at the Palarong Pambansa is good enough to be the highlight of his or her year.
For baseball player Julio Arrastia, who’s fresh off leading De La Salle Zobel to the highly-coveted UAAP Juniors Championship, however, being at the Palaro is just the cherry on top of his year.
The incoming college student unquestionably sees being in Antique as an honor and a privilege. Arrastia is still trying to cherish his first Palaro experience as a high schooler.
“Well, we haven’t reached the heat of the tournament. We don’t really know what it’s like. It’s my first time being here in high school so I can’t compare it just yet. But maybe when we get further into the tournament or the moment I get back, I’ll have a better perspective.”
Making it to Palaro
For a player of his caliber, it could be a surprise for some to hear that he only qualified to represent the National Capital Region only in his senior year.
The reason for this is the Ateneo Baseball Team, who qualified to represent NCR in the Palaro for the past two years. They won the baseball championship in both years.
Knowing the Ateneo-La Salle rivalry, losing is not an option for Arrastia and his squad. He, however, quickly brushed off the sentiment and said that the their rival’s accolades are not on the team’s mind.
“We don’t think about the past. We just want to do our best,” he explained.
On Monday, April 25, the NCR team suffered a set-back when they were upset by the Negros Island Region. It was a wake up call for a team that, like the rest of the NCR, has the highest of expectations.
Now, Arrastia and his squad know that for them to win this tournament, they’ll need to play much crisper and mistake-free baseball. Luckily for them, it’s still early enough in the tournament and they have a couple more games to adjust and fix some of their chinks.
“We know we didn’t play our best but personally I don’t feel too down about it ’cause I know we’re still going to the next round. I’m not saying that we’re the favorite or anything but every time we step on the field, we’re expected to give our best and to win,” Arrastia said.
Decision time
While many use the games to get noticed, the DLSZ product needs no introduction when it comes to the Philippines’ best college baseball teams. This is because, unquestionably, Arrastia is one of the best talents in his graduating class.
With many teams certain to welcome him in, the first baseman has big decisions to make regarding where he will be studying next year. One thing is for certain though, that while he hasn’t decided where, he will continue to play the game he loves in college.
“No, not yet (decided where I’m going to study), but I’m going to play baseball in college.”
It’s safe to say that many coaches are anxiously awaiting Arrastia’s decision and hoping things go their way. – Rappler.com
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