Alfredo Escalera '12 Recruiting Profile

I can easily summarize my life as a compilation of hard work, commitment with the community, dedication, and the assurance that whether I win or lose, I have invested the best of capacities to the mission at hand. During my entire life I have been dedicated to my academics, the sport of baseball, my family and serving others. Sometimes my competitive, aggressive and relentless traits within the baseball field, seems incompatible with my rather gentle, flexible and diplomatic personality outside the field. Sometimes I feel that these qualities tend to confuse both my teammates as well as my coaches. On one hand, my teammates may feel that my "in-field personality" may be a challenging experience outside the field, and on the other, my coaches see my gentleness outside the field and get surprise when I switch to become a forceful player. These combined contradictory qualities have given me the respect and esteem of everyone around me, including my family and friends. Regarding my family, I am proud to say that I come from a very structured background. My parents met while my mother was a nurse and my father was undergoing his internal medicine training at a university hospital in New York. They have been married for 18 years and along with my younger sister, we have built a proximity and understanding, somewhat uncharacteristic for these contemporary times. I am blessed to say that my parents and my little sister have been there in every important occasion in my life. Their support, understanding, teachings and presence have made me a complete person both in the academic and the athletic arena. In fact, in the academic arena, I have done very well. My grades have always been high, but now that I understand the value of being accepted in an excellent university I have committed myself to maintaining a competitive grade point average. As an outcome of this effort, I was honored with the nomination for membership at my school's National Honor Society. So far, my GPA is 3.75 and I am sure that once I begin college, I will be as successful as I am in high school. In the athletic facet, my interest in the sport of baseball dates back to my years in preparatory school in the Caribbean island of Puerto Rico. I first stood on a baseball field when I was only 4 years old. Since then, I have played the sport uninterruptedly, enjoying the game and learning about the many talented athletes that have become heroes and inspired so many people thru their performance "on" and "off" the field. Initially I began enjoying the sport in a small community team and at the age of 7 my parents signed me in the Roosevelt Baseball Club, one of the most prominent and competitive baseball programs in Puerto Rico. There, I was repeatedly recognized for my outstanding performances. At 9, I began a well thought-out program developed by the renowned personal trainer Celso Davila, the speed trainer Jose Candelario and the former MLB pitcher Edwin Correa intended to polish my baseball skills. They helped me in developing a strong muscular physic (currently I am 6'1", 170 pounds) and a fast reaction (60 yard dash is 6.7 seconds). My parents as well as several of my trainers saw a particular talent that needed a more controlled and sophisticated development program as the one that the IMG Academies provides. So, after spending three consecutive summers in their program I was invited by the Head Coach, Ken Bolek to join the full time program. I expected for it to be rewarding, but what IMG has done for me, is nearly too wonderful for words. The fact that my athletic training has been second to none should not undermine the impressive cultural exchange, the instruction in nutrition and personal care, the lessons in sportsmanship or the coaching in the steps for overall success as an individual. While playing for the IMG's team, my batting average has been consistently over .450 for the part 3 years. My defense and speed have progressively improved. I am certainly satisfied with my accomplishments. During my off time at IMG, I joined a Palomino League Team in Puerto Rico. This worldwide-recognized league is a category for ballplayers from ages 17 and 18 years old. After evaluation my skills and the capability to support the team's goals, the tournament director allowed me to join the team even thought at the time I was only 15 years old. I ended up the regular season with a bating average of .610. The 2011 summer I was selected to play with the prestigious Florida Bombers Team. Finally, it is important for me to state my pledge to serve my community whenever the need arises. My father first introduced me to the community services when he was appointed as Deputy Mayor for the City of San Juan in Puerto Rico. Despite the fact that I was only 7 years old, he used to take me to community events intended to assist the homeless, AIDS patients and underprivileged kids. I think he wanted me to see that, there was another world beyond the protective bubble of love that both my parents created around our family. Since then, I have participated in several community service activities, most recently in assisting a group of underperforming pre-school students while they were taking summer school, helping in the training for the local Special Olympic Soccer team and helping in a voluntary effort to keep the beaches clean. I am humbly convinced that both, my academic and athletic efforts and accomplishments can together boost my probabilities to be accepted into a university in which I am given the opportunity to participate as a member of the baseball team, and at the same time, help me in reaching my goal of getting an outstanding education. I am keeping an open mind in terms of the specific university location and size that I would like to attend even thought, when the time comes, I would favor those colleges with a highly regarded academics and athletic programs. Academic excellence will be important in the prospective evaluation of my alternatives, since I plan to pursue a business administration mayor and eventually a master degree in the same field. I will always be grateful and will honor the fact that I was given a chance to success. Thanks