After finishing fourth in 6A Region III District 18 with powerhouse programs Lamar, Bellaire and Westside, the Heights Bulldog baseball team is moving forward into the playoffs, led by star junior shortstop Ryan Soto.
Soto is a hardworking, naturally talented athlete who leads the team in several categories despite never having worked with paid trainers.
“Some people believe baseball is a money game and you get better when you pay for training, but I’ve never worked with any paid trainers,” said Soto. “Just hard work with my uncle, Jonathan Lacourse, and my grandpa, Victor Lacourse. They taught me everything I needed to know about baseball.”
According to the Max Preps website, Soto leads his baseball team with a .456 batting average, .579 slugging percentage, .584 on-base percentage, 26 hits and 17 stolen bases.
“Every chance I get, I work hard in the batting cages. The cages help me to work on timing,” said Soto.
His head coach has watched Soto’s hard work pay off.
“Ryan is dedicated to being the best hitter he can be,” said Heights head baseball coach David Petty. “He spends a lot of time in the cages working on his hitting and the results reflect his work ethic. He is truly a natural athlete and a spark to the team when he’s in the zone.”
Soto was encouraged to play up as a younger player, forcing him to learn the game faster.
“When I was 15 years old, I played with Houston Thunder Baseball’s 18U team,” said Soto. “They were a top-notch baseball program. At that level, I was playing 18U baseball against D3 and junior college prospects who were pitching high 80s, 90s all year around.”
Playing this level of competition readied Soto’s eye for baseball at higher speeds, preparing him to be a more effective hitter when he saw slower speeds in his high school games.
Some people believe baseball is a money game and you get better when you pay for training, but I’ve never worked with any paid trainers. Just hard work with my uncle, Jonathan Lacourse and my grandpa, Victor Lacourse, they taught me everything I needed to know about baseball.
Ryan Soto
“In high school, most of the pitchers I’m facing are throwing 75-78mph pitches, so my early work I did on my timing is really paying off,” said Soto.
As a freshman, Soto had to wait his turn to shine as freshmen weren’t given varsity time yet. This forced Soto to wait and watch as junior shortstop and team captain, Eduardo Lopez, manned the team.
“Watching Eduardo take charge of the team helped me to see how to encourage players when they were at their lowest. It also helped me see the importance of defense at the shortstop position,” said Soto.
During this time, Soto also watched a lot of MLB and added even more baseball knowledge to his game. The player he enjoyed watching most was Ednel Javier “Javy” Báez, a Puerto Rican professional baseball shortstop, third baseman and center fielder for the Detroit Tigers.
“Baez’s baseball IQ is top-notch,” said Soto. “When he played for the Chicago Cubs, he played shortstop and people would compare my playing style with his because of my defense and fast tags.”
As one of the team’s captains, Soto encourages his team in the toughest of moments to keep playing no matter what mistake is made, because on the baseball field, the worst place a player can be is in their head thinking about the mistake they just made.
“I encourage the players to keep their chin up, next pitch, next play,” said Soto. “My uncle Jonathan Lacourse used to help me get out of my head when I was having a bad game, so as a team leader, it’s important for me to encourage the younger guys to keep playing as we continue this playoff run.”
About Ryan Jesse Soto:
Class: 2026
IG: htx23k
Position: Shortstop
Height & weight: 5-feet-10, 160 pounds
Favorite artist: Lil Baby
Status: Uncommitted
Favorite subject: Chemistry
Shout outs: Mom, stepdad, Uncle Jonathan, Uncle Victor, Grandpa Victor, Grandma Sandy and Brooklynn Lopez
