By Georgia Blair — Staff Writer
As Johnny Mendoza’s time catching base-stealers on the diamond nears its end, snagging real-world thieves off the streets is next for the Bay Area native.
Mendoza plans to join the police academy after his time at San Jose State comes to a close.
The junior has grown up wanting to be a part of law enforcement and ideally become a detective with a Bay Area based agency.
“It has been a dream since he was a little boy,” said Mendoza’s mother, Angelica.
His ambition to serve is something he is admired for by his teammates, friends and of course his family.
“Thank God it was close to home,” Mendoza said about walking on to SJSU without a single Division I offer. “I was kind of lucky because I had no other offers. Walking on was my only option.”
Mendoza battled for game time his freshman year but has since solidified his position as the starting catcher.
Head coach Brad Sanfilippo remembers Mendoza from recruiting around the Bay Area and is pleased that he ended up at SJSU.
“He is the lead by example type,” Sanfilippo said. “In the last two years, he has been extremely clutch offensively and given us so much in his role behind the plate.”
Mendoza’s ability to play both sides of the game at a high level has set him apart from the others in his position.
The junior catcher currently has a 1.000 fielding percentage which leads the Spartans defensively.
“He is just so valuable to what we do in all aspects of the game,” said Sanfilippo. “He is an unbelievable teammate and he wants to serve, so I can see those traits carrying over into his career in law enforcement for sure.”
Those qualities aren’t just seen from his higher ups, but from the rest of the club as well.
“He is a huge team guy and incredibly selfless,” said junior pitcher Josh Zanger. “Behind the plate, he is super reliable and really calm— he’s a fun guy to have around in the dugout.”
And whether he’s in that dugout, behind the plate or in the box, Mendoza knows his biggest fans are always in the seats.
“I love seeing them in the stands at every game,” said Mendoza about his family who attends 100 percent of his home games. “I am lucky that they are so close.”
Mendoza’s team-first mentality has allowed him to continue to make an impact from the bench after suffering a knee injury.
His injury will force him to miss about 4-5 weeks of ball late in the Spartan season, but he hopes to be back for the end of conference play and any postseason bids.
“Johnny always works so hard to achieve his goals,” said Rick Mendoza, Johnny’s father. “Baseball has taught him discipline, respect and leadership— all things that hopefully will help him in his career in law enforcement.”
Mendoza is a sociology major and if a career in baseball after college doesn’t work out, he will step into the police academy.
“Johnny is a fine young man, we are all so proud of him and he has a bright future ahead of him,” Angelica said.
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