Oscar Romero once told me he struck out in his first 10 at-bats as a Tucson High School baseball player, a freshman in 1975.
“No way,†I said.
“Ten straight,†he confirmed.
As a senior in 1978, Romero, a third baseman, made the All-City team, hitting .378.
So began one of the most remarkable baseball stories in Tucson history. Romero went on to coach a city-record 488 victories as Tucson High’s baseball coach, 1990-2018. But he was too modest to even estimate his career coaching victories in American Legion and summer travel ball. It surely soared past 800 wins.
Tucson head coach Oscar Romero, center, talks to his players before the state Division II baseball championship game.
Romero was Mr. Baseball in Tucson. He was on the staff when Tucson High won back-to-back state titles in 1987 and 1988. He was on Ken Jacome’s staff at Pima College the last four seasons. He even spent a few years traveling back and forth to Alamosa, Colorado, to help coach his son °¿°ù±ô²¹²Ô»å´Ç’s team at Adams State.
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Tragically, Romero died of liver cancer earlier this month. He was just 65.
“My prayers were for him not to suffer,†said Michael Castaneda, Romero’s long-time — 25 years — summer league coaching partner. “He was a great human being.â€
Romero’s impact on Tucson baseball was such that when his funeral service was scheduled for Sept. 20 at Tucson’s downtown St. Augustine Cathedral, Pima College baseball coach Jacome acted quickly to reschedule the annual PCC Rich Alday fundraising golf tournament, set for the same day.
“Almost everyone in the golf tournament, probably 130 people or more, planned to go to Oscar’s service,†Castaneda said. Pima’s golf event will now be held Nov. 8 at El Rio Golf Course.
Romero’s Tucson High teams reached the state finals in 2002, 2015 and 2016. His Tucson American Legion team reached the national finals in 2008. As far as I can research, no other Tucson high school baseball coach has more than 436 career victories, and that was Sahuaro’s Hal Eustice with a combined total at Sahuaro and San Manuel.
“Oscar wasn’t about wins and losses,†said Castaneda, a retired UA professor. “He was all about the kids. He was the king of second chances. He wouldn’t hold grudges against anybody. It wasn’t about the money. He spent a ton of his own money to keep lower socio-economic players active and to help them improve both in baseball and with their education skills. I spent 25 summers coaching with Oscar and I don’t remember any bad experiences.â€
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