At a young age, Captains outfielder Jonah Advincula learned a valuable lesson about how to deal with setbacks and disappointments in life as a baseball player.
It’s a lesson that continues to benefit the 23-year-old Californian as he navigates the ups and downs of his first full season in professional baseball.
Advincula was selected by the Guardians in the eighth round of the 2023 draft out of Washington State University.
Through August 23, the 6’1″, 195-pound switch-hitter outfielder had a batting average of .233 with four home runs and 36 RBIs in 87 games.
Those aren’t the numbers Adnvincula expected from himself after excelling as a junior at Washington State University and two years before that at Division III University of Redlands.
“It was definitely a little frustrating at times,” Advincula said during a recent interview at Classic Auto Group Park.
“I’m learning how to separate at-bats and develop a pitch-to-pitch mentality,” he added. “You have to react to failure and learn from it. This experience has been humbling.”
What he’s going through now as a professional baseball player brings back memories for Advincula when, as a nine-year-old, he learned he didn’t make the Little League All-Star team in his hometown of San Jose, California.
“It really bothered me,” said Advincula. “I had to work hard to get healthy again.”
It’s important to remember that Advincula comes from a baseball family. His father, Jeremy, played college baseball at San Jose State and is a well-respected youth and high school baseball coach in the San Jose area. His younger brother, Jarren, is a sophomore on the University of California Berkeley baseball team.
Jeremy Advincula was there for his son after this early setback.
“My dad worked with me all offseason,” Advincula said. “I learned to hit with both hands and got significantly better. I made the All-Star team at age 10 and knew baseball was something I wanted to do for the rest of my life.”
The father-son bond remains strong.
“I just got off the phone with Dad and talked about my swing approach. He’s still on top of it,” Advincula said with a smile.
Baserunning is one of Advincula’s strengths. He has stolen 29 bases in 32 attempts.
“I’m a little mad about the three (caught stealing),” Anvinula said with a laugh. “I’ve always prided myself on my baserunning and attention to detail. That’s a big part of my game.”
Advincula spent the entire 2024 season with the High-A Captains, who are moving on to the Midwest League playoffs after winning the first half of the MWL East title.
“The first half was a lot of fun,” Advincula said. “There are a lot of new faces in the clubhouse now, but we have a winning culture that carried over into the second half.”
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