NH: Welcome to Episode 21 of Timeout. Each episode we dive into the sports scene here at Monta Vista and explore the journey of athletes from various sports. In this episode, we are joined by Avyan Mahajan who shares his journey in baseball.

AM: Hi, my name is Avyan Mahajan and I’m a sophomore who’s on varsity for the baseball team.

NH: What position do you play?

AM: I’m a centerfielder.

SP: How did it impact your childhood?

AM: It was something I always loved to do and it was just a break from everything else, and it was just something me and my friends could do and I had fun with them. And as I got older, I got more serious, but it was still fun. 

AS: Why did you start playing baseball? 

AM: Because my mom wanted me to play a sport and I didn’t like soccer. And so she decided to put me in baseball. My mom got me into baseball when I was in fourth grade. And she’s a big role model in my life. And I really look up to her in every way. And so when she signed me up for baseball, it was something new that I hadn’t tried before. And so when I tried it, I really liked it. And she was always there for me throughout my whole journey, ever since fourth grade and up till now, she’s always there. She’s been supporting me throughout my journey the whole entire way, and she’s always there for me whenever I need help with something or I just need a partner to play catch with or anything. She will always be there for me and she’s my role model and I really look up to her.

SP: Do you remember playing baseball for the first time?

AM: Yeah, I do. There were Little League tryouts and I had no idea what I was doing. But it was in fourth grade, so no one really had any idea what they were doing. And so I did kind of feel out of place because other people had been playing before, but there was this one guy, his name was Karthik Vlasta. We were friends in fourth grade. And he was there for me during baseball, and I looked up to him because he was a lot better than me. And yeah, I remember him. 

NH: Are you still in touch with him? 

AM: No, he moved to Florida or something. 

NH: How did he impact your journey in baseball?

AM: He got me into it. And he got me into that sense of community, so I didn’t feel left out and I felt a part of the baseball gang.

SP: Have there been any coaches or team captains or even fellow teammates that have greatly impacted your life both in and out of baseball?

AM: There is a baseball player, Bryce Harper, he plays for the Phillies, and I look up to him because I like his attitude towards baseball and he loves the game and he loves playing it and he’s really good at it. Sravik Saja, he’s a junior here. He is a very good player. He’s probably the best on the team, by far. He’s impacted my life as a baseball player, because he’s a role model to look up to and I strive to be him on the field.

NH: What’s your favorite thing about playing baseball?

AM: It’s seeing how far you can hit the ball. 

SP: What’s the furthest you’ve hit the ball?

AM: Actually, recently, it was last Friday, around 400-something feet.

AS: What’s your favorite memory of playing baseball?

AM: Last fall, in October when we won our tournament championship. Because it was a really close game. And we just barely walked it off. 

SP: After winning it, how did your team react and celebrate?

AM: We were very happy, very energetic, and then we all got dinner at some taco place afterwards.

NH: How did you personally feel after winning?

AM: It felt like a relief because the way our tournaments work is that it’s single elimination. So the whole Sunday, starting at 8 a.m., we went until 7 p.m. that day. And so I was tired because it’s like six back-to-back-to-back games. But it was a relief that it was finally done, and we did it.

SP: Do you plan to continue playing baseball in the future, like past high school?

AM: I might play at the college level, depending on which college I go to. But not after that.

SP: Are there any difficulties or obstacles you faced in your journey in baseball?

AM: Yeah, so there’s a term called a slump in baseball. That just means where you just can’t hit, as much as you try. You just can’t hit, and can’t hit, and can’t hit. And those are always hard because you have to go up 21, 22, 25 times and you can’t get a single hit and it’s really demotivating, but if you stick to it, you’ll get through it eventually.

NH: Can you go more into how you get over it and how you got out of this slump?

AM: You kind of just got to be resilient and keep practicing, and eventually you’ll get out of it and start getting better.

AS: Have you ever thought of quitting baseball?

AM: So in eighth grade, I decided to be optimistic and I took on three things at the same time. I was doing wrestling for Kennedy, I was doing travel ball for my club and I was doing Little League for the Little League. And so that was an interesting spring, because I had three different things going on at one time. And there I thought about quitting because it was just a lot of work. And it was a lot more than I was used to putting in. And then freshman year, last year, because I was coming from travel ball where our team was really, really good and we won a lot, then Monta Vista just kind of died down a little bit. And so losing a lot — I wasn’t used to that. And so that was a little bit hard.

NH: How did you feel when you lost so many games? How was it different from the other ones?

AM: It was different because it was less of a big deal, because I guess we were used to it, versus in travel ball a loss in the tournament four a lot bigger because there weren’t that many games. You played two tournaments a week, and one loss and you were out. So I guess the stakes were bigger and versus here you would play 20 games a season, so one loss doesn’t really affect you that much.

SP: Do you have any goals for senior year, to be team captain?

AM: Yeah. Yeah, team captain in senior or junior year. 

AS: What are some goals you have accomplished so far? And do you have any goals for the future?

AM: Some goals I’ve accomplished are that me and my team — in last season’s for my club team — we won the championship for our tournament. As for future goals, I hope either next year or my senior year, our team — the baseball team at school — can go to CCS.

AS: How do you want to end off your last game of the season?

AM: It’s against Gunderson. They’re not the best team and I think we can win that game, so it’d be really nice if we end the season on a win.

SP: Do you have any goals for the future or your next seasons playing baseball? Any particular goals?

AM: Yeah, I have two — I want to hit for 300, that just means hit three out of 10 times. And I also want to hit a home run in an actual game, not in practice.

NH: Are there any goals you have for the whole team? That you can lead them to?

AM: Go to CCS and try and get some League wins.

SP: How about the team culture of baseball. Do you think that culture has had a big impact on you? Has it helped you?

AM: It’s a different culture than everywhere else. It depends on the age group, because when you’re younger, it’s the same as everything else. But when you get older, it’s different. And it feels like a community.

NH: How does it impact your life now?

AM: Now, it provides a sense of comfort and it’s a break from testing and everything else. And it’s just two or three hours every day where I can just have fun. And that team is like your brotherhood and you will do anything for them. And it’s like the family after you play with them for years and years.

NH: That’s it for Episode 21 of Timeout. Thank you Avyan for joining us. I’m Niveda.

AS: I’m Ananda. 

SP: And I’m Stella.