Fresno State Athletics
Senior Spotlight: JJ Santa Cruz
5/17/2018 11:00:00 AM | Baseball
Fresno State Baseball will celebrate its four seniors in this weekend's final home series against UNLV this weekend (May 17-19).
FRESNO, Calif. - The third senior to be announced before Senior Day on Saturday is redshirt senior, JJ Santa Cruz.
The valley native out of Madera, Calif. played his senior season of high school baseball under former Bulldog star Terance Fraizer who served as head coach at Liberty-Madera High School in 2013. Santa Cruz was a two-year letter winner in both football and baseball for the Hawks. His junior baseball season was highlighted by a .395 average with 30 hits, 12 RBIs and 12 runs scored. He capped the year with an All-North Sequoia League honor as a first baseman. Santa Cruz pitched 32.1 innings in his senior season, tossing 39 strikeouts and giving up 28 hits.
Santa Cruz got his collegiate career started at Bakersfield College in 2014 where he appeared in 11 games and made eight starts. He tossed 44.0 innings and struck out 28 batters while posting a 4.30 ERA.
In his sophomore year, Santa Cruz returned to Fresno to play a pair of seasons at Fresno City College. After utilizing his redshirt season in 2015, Santa Cruz returned to the mound for the Rams in 2016 and made 15 appearances with 11 starts. He finished the season with a 6-3 record, 2.97 ERA and 64 strikeouts through 60.2 innings pitched.
The Diamond Dogs welcomed Santa Cruz in 2017. He posted a 3-1 overall record, with two additional saves on the mound in his debut season with the 'Dogs. His three wins came against Nevada (March 5), Pepperdine (March 22) and UC Riverside (May 3). In his first collegiate win against Nevada, he worked through 2.2 innings while picking up two strikeouts. Santa Cruz chalked his first start on the mound as a Bulldog on February 26 against UC Riverside where he threw a season-best five innings. He also picked up a season-high four strikeouts in two innings of work against Air Force on April 14. Santa Cruz ranked fourth in the club with 25 mound appearances and third with nine games started in 2017. He earned Academic All-Mountain West honors in his first season at Fresno State.
Santa Cruz has made 16 appearances for the 'Dogs this season. Through 13.0 innings on the mound, he has picked up 19 strikeouts while allowing only eight walks.
GoBulldogs.com met with Santa Cruz to get a deeper insight on his transition to Fresno State as well as his experience as a Bulldog.
Q: What is your most memorable moment as a Bulldog?
Santa Cruz: "My first game I ever pitched here was opening day last year against Oregon. The first pitch I ever threw as a Bulldog was a single through the four hole and I remember thinking, 'man this may not go well' but I went on to go three scoreless and get my first save as a Bulldog. The first is always the most memorable."
Q: How was your transition into becoming a Fresno State student-athlete?
Santa Cruz: "It was smooth coming from a junior college, but not knowing anybody on the team all that well kinda made it tough. My teammates welcomed me in though and that made everything go well while coming to Fresno State."
Q: Who have you most looked up to while at Fresno State?
Santa Cruz: "Besides my parents, who are the hardest working people I know, it would be my roommate Edgar Gonzalez. He is not only one of the hardest working teammates we have but he is a good enough friend to where he pushes me and I push him back to work even harder. I really admire that about him and hope I can work as hard and be better than him sooner rather than later."
Q: Do you have any pre-game rituals/superstitions?
Santa Cruz: "I send a prayer before the start of each inning I pitch to my beloved friend Deondre Howard (Day Day)."
Q: How would you describe this senior class?
Santa Cruz: "I would say as a collective group it's a brotherhood. We all act like we all grew up together. I think that's what makes this team great. We all respect each other but at the same time keep each other in check. The occasional joking around with each other is the best part. I would also say these guys are workers. These guys work harder than anybody and any other group of guys I know. We may not be the most talented, but we make sure we work hard to be as good as we can be and beyond. That is what makes this senior class special."
QUICK HITTERS
Favorite Food: My mother's clam chowder
Favorite Hobby: Going to the lake and having a great time with family and friends
Favorite Music: I love rap and alternative rock, especially Wiz Khalifa and Pearl Jam...those are my go-to's
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