By Brian Argabright
The 830 Times
EAGLE PASS — A part of Del Rio’s rich baseball history was honored as the Babe Ruth Baseball 13-15-Year-Old World Series got underway Wednesday.
Longtime Del Rio Babe Ruth Baseball League coach and board member Tony Reyes was honored by tournament organizers prior to the game between Del Rio and Tallahassee, Fla., Wednesday at the City of Eagle Pass Patsy Winn Sports Complex.
Reyes, who passed away in 2019 at the age of 71, was represented at the event by his widow Carmen and daughters Elsa, Diana and Cindy Reyes.
Morris Libson Jr., Eagle Pass Babe Ruth Baseball League President, introduced the family and became emotional when speaking of his longtime friend and sometimes on-field rival. Carmen said she remembered the two men coaching against other and while both were friends, that desire to beat the other was always there.
“Sometimes Tony would win, and sometimes he wouldn’t. But they were always friends,” Carmen said before the ceremony.
In his honor, she wore one of Tony’s Babe Ruth all-star shirts but said she couldn’t remember what year it was from. “There’s still a closet full of baseball shirts and jerseys,” she said.
Reyes was associated with Del Rio baseball for decades. He managed and coached a variety of teams during his lifetime at various levels of competition including Little League, Babe Ruth and the Mexico Veteran’s Baseball League.
The number of players he coached reached into the thousands, but one of the highlights of his coaching career came in 1995 when he guided the Del Rio Babe Ruth Baseball League’s team to the 16-year-old World Series in Jamestown, N.Y.
Carmen and her family were all smiles as she and the Libson family shared stories of Tony. He was one of eight people who would be honored at the tournament with the majority being from the host city of Eagle Pass.
When time came for Carmen to throw out the ceremonial first pitch, she reared back and hurled her best attempt to Del Rio catcher George Avalos Jr. A cheer came from the crowd as Avalos jogged out to hug her and greet her family before returning to his team.
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