Savannah Bananas viral outfielder RobertAnthony Cruz, also known as Coach RAC, sees how God used one of his worst moments to transform his career.
“First time a college coach ever came to watch me play, I had the worst game of the year,” Coach RAC admitted in a video shared on Instagram. “Biola University came out to watch me play. I went 0-for-3 and made an error in the field. But just a few days after this bad game, UC Riverside came out to watch me play, and I had the best game of the year. I hit two home runs, and they basically offered me a scholarship on the spot.”
He went to UC Riverside but struggled and realized how much he needed community.
“That successful two-homer game in high school would lead to a year of trials that would prepare me for where I’m at now in life. And my sophomore year, I would end up transferring to Biola University, and now they had money for me. And this time I knew a little bit more of what I wanted,” he reflected.
If it weren’t for that bad game and then a tough year at UC Riverside, Cruz wouldn’t have landed on the Bananas.
Related: How Coach RAC Uses Baseball to Point the Next Generation to Jesus
“After my whole freshman year of struggling, I knew that I wanted something that would give me deeper purpose. So I changed my major to Christian ministry. I never would have known that that was what I was passionate about unless I struggled so much my freshman year finding purpose,” he revealed. “If you know my story, I would then go on to get signed by the Nationals and then get cut very quickly. And I thought, ‘Man, what was all of that for?’ I by no means mean to say that I have arrived, but I am currently standing at Wrigley Field.”
“But through all of those experiences, the good and the bad, I believe that God has been shaping me. I believe He has a purpose for my life,” Cruz emphasized.
For those struggling with failures, setbacks and things that didn’t go according to plan, he said that “those are the very things that have shaped you into the person that you have become.”
“So, if you can try your best to zoom out, zoom out and realize the unique calling that you have over your life and use that to serve others, to love others,” Coach RAC encouraged. “That will be far more fulfilling than your plans going the way that you drew them up.”
Aside from the Bananaball league, Coach RAC has used his platform to start the Sandlot Revival Worship Nights. As the Bananas travel to different cities across the nation, he and several teammates host a worship night for the public.
“With these events, I don’t care if five people show up or 5,000 people show,” Cruz previously said of the events. “I just want people to experience the living God and have their lives transformed by it. We are doing this to unite the Church about the Gospel of Jesus Christ and share stories with the next generation so they hear about the joys of doing life with Jesus Christ.”
Looking back, Coach RAC sees every setback — from that dismal outing in front of Biola to his brief stint with the Nationals — as part of a larger, purposeful path that shaped both his career and his faith.
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