Photo by Cavender Neutze
Texas A&M Baseball
A&M baseball signs cancer survivor with honorary letter of intent
Statistics like batting average, home runs or ERA draw most coaches’ attention. On Thursday afternoon underneath Olsen Field at Blue Bell Park, Texas A&M head baseball coach Rob Childress was not like most coaches.
The Aggies held a press conference to announce their youngest signee, a 13 year-old College Station product. And did so for all the right reasons.
Eighth grader Elias Gomez has battled Medulloblastoma, a fast-growing brain tumor, since he was diagnosed in 2007. After undergoing surgery, in which the proximity of the tumor to his brain stem didn’t allow for its complete removal, he began receiving radiation treatment from his brain to his spine. He received a stem cell rescue in January 2008 and underwent six weeks of chemotherapy.
Eighth grader Elias Gomez has battled Medulloblastoma, a fast-growing brain tumor, since he was diagnosed in 2007. After undergoing surgery, in which the proximity of the tumor to his brain stem didn’t allow for its complete removal, he began receiving radiation treatment from his brain to his spine. He received a stem cell rescue in January 2008 and underwent six weeks of chemotherapy.
Due to the intense nature of the treatment, Elias was forced to miss his first year of grade school. In May 2008, he was able to go home and now has regular spinal taps and MRI’s, but is currently not on any medication.
Now, thanks to Rob Childress and the Fightin’ Texas Aggie baseball team, he has some new teammates in his fight. Coach Childress spoke about the young Aggie fan’s story and what led him to offer Elias an honorary letter of intent.
“At the beginning of the season, we set three values that we wanted to strive for as a team," Childress said. “The more I heard about his story, the more sure I was that Elias was an example of all three. Beyond that, he is resilient. His resilience through it all stood out to me the most.”
With a perfect record so far on the season, it would be easy to focus solely on the team’s upcoming weekend series. Instead, A&M baseball focused their attention on an inspirational young man and made him part of the team.
“We’ve been doing a great job recruiting but we felt like we needed something to put us over the top,” Childress said. “Having Elias join our program is exactly the addition we were looking for.”
After being introduced to his new team, Elias tried on his jersey and stepped to the podium to field questions for the first time as a member of the Aggies. “I like doing new things, I like trying new things,” said the honorary recruit. “Being from around here, this is my favorite team and university. I’m excited.”
Elias went on to sign his letter of intent, amongst applause from those in attendance, and became a part of his favorite team.
Now, thanks to Rob Childress and the Fightin’ Texas Aggie baseball team, he has some new teammates in his fight. Coach Childress spoke about the young Aggie fan’s story and what led him to offer Elias an honorary letter of intent.
“At the beginning of the season, we set three values that we wanted to strive for as a team," Childress said. “The more I heard about his story, the more sure I was that Elias was an example of all three. Beyond that, he is resilient. His resilience through it all stood out to me the most.”
With a perfect record so far on the season, it would be easy to focus solely on the team’s upcoming weekend series. Instead, A&M baseball focused their attention on an inspirational young man and made him part of the team.
“We’ve been doing a great job recruiting but we felt like we needed something to put us over the top,” Childress said. “Having Elias join our program is exactly the addition we were looking for.”
After being introduced to his new team, Elias tried on his jersey and stepped to the podium to field questions for the first time as a member of the Aggies. “I like doing new things, I like trying new things,” said the honorary recruit. “Being from around here, this is my favorite team and university. I’m excited.”
Elias went on to sign his letter of intent, amongst applause from those in attendance, and became a part of his favorite team.
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