At the end of every baseball season, the Houston Coaches Baseball Association collects nominations from fellow coaches to assemble two rosters comprising of the top players in the region. This final showdown on the diamond offers these exceptional athletes a chance to compete before embarking on their collegiate journeys. In class 6A, Zion Stephens & Robert Robinson Jr. were two of those athletes who had the opportunity to showcase their skills.
“I was truly blessed to receive the nomination today. I want to thank God for the opportunity to come out and play with the best of the best,” said Ridge Point High School senior Zion Stephens.
Stephens grew up playing golf but transitioned to baseball at 9 years old. He played for the Pearland Outlaws in Pearland, Texas before relocating to Georgia where he would join the Georgia Bombers. After returning to Houston, he began playing with Marucci baseball.
“Man, it felt great to get the nomination,” said Heights High School senior Robert Robinson Jr. I balled during my season and to have coaches notice and nominate me, it is truly a blessing to be out here competing with some of the best in Texas.
Robinson began playing T-ball in Kingwood, Texas at 3 years old. When he turned six, he joined a select team coached by his father, challenging older opponents.
“We were always playing up in age. When we were 6, we played against 8- and 9-year-olds,” said Robinson.
In middle school, Robinson played with a team called Wow Factor, participating in major tournaments across Texas and Atlanta. During his junior season, he decided to take the next step and began attending showcases to increase his exposure.
Both Robinson and Stephens agree that playing competitive travel baseball helped them elevate their game and prepared them to walk into high school ready to compete on the varsity level.
“Travel ball really prepared me for my freshman year to have the opportunity to start on varsity and play with the bigger guys,” said Robinson.
“Summer Ball has good competition. Marucci did a good job at getting us to play against the best competition out there. Seeing that level of competition really helped me prepare for the high school level,” said Stephens.
Both Stephens and Robinson Jr. have committed to play baseball at the collegiate level next season. Stephens will be playing at Abilene Christian University, where he plans to major in business management and Robinson will be playing at Morehouse College, where he plans to major in business finance.
“Abilene Christian is a good Christian school. It’s a mid-major that loves to compete, I love the coaching staff, and they have great facilities,” said Stephens.
“Morehouse was a perfect fit for me because it’s an HBCU. The culture’s amazing. I took a visit and stayed in one of the dorms with one of the guys and it felt like a family. I felt like this could really be my home where I could thrive,” said Robinson.
About Zion Stephens:
Class: 2023
IG: @Zion_Stephens7
Twitter: @ZionStephens6
Position: Shortstop, second base
Height & weight: 6-feet-0, 175 pounds
Players he studies: Justin Vassos, Tim Anderson (White Sox), Jose Altuvè (Astros)
Status: Committed to Abilene Christian University
Favorite artist: Bryson Tiller
Favorite subject: Calculus
Shout-outs: Mom, family, God
About Robert Robinson Jr.:
Class: 2023
IG: @Rjunior.0
Twitter: @RJRobinson_23
Position: First base, catcher
Height & weight: 6-feet-1, 215 pounds
Player he studies: Martín Maldonado (Astros)
Status: Committed to Morehouse College
Favorite artist: Lil Baby
Favorite subject: Calculus
Shout-outs: Mom, dad, sister, Coach Petty
– Written by Jimmie Aggison
