McAllen Memorial alum Cortinas named Mustangs’ baseball head coach
By BRYAN RAMOS
Staff Writer
McALLEN — McAllen Memorial alumnus Roque “Rock” Cortinas played for the Mustangs during the late 1980s and early ’90s.
After a college career that resulted in being inducted into the Texas A&M-Kingsville Javelina Hall of Fame as part of their 1995 team and two head coaching stops in Starr County, Cortinas is set to lead the program he once played for.
Cortinas was approved by the McAllen ISD school board as McAllen Memorial’s baseball head coach on June 16. The position opened after former head coach Felipe Barrera resigned in March.
“It’s always been a dream of mine. I think it’s like that for every coach — you always want to coach where you’re from, where you played,” Cortinas said. “I’ve always kept up with (Memorial) throughout the years even though I’m over (in Starr County). I know the program has been a little down right now, so I think it’s a good time to go back. They’re getting a brand new facility, a brand new turf field, things are looking up in McAllen, so I’m excited.”
Cortinas, who was a college pitcher for Texas at Brownsville and TAMUK, began his coaching career in Roma as an assistant for two years and head coach for nine more. He helped turn the program and led the Gladiators to a district title. He was then named Rio Grande City’s baseball head coach and helped lead the Rattlers to a district title in 2021 and into the Class 5A regional quarterfinals during the 2019 season.
“I hope to bring a little bit of that experience of winning,” Cortinas said. “The years that I was at Memorial were probably the best years that Memorial has ever had, going three or four rounds (in the playoffs) every time. Hopefully me being there can get a little bit of excitement in the community.”
The 2022 Mustangs finished as the No. 5 seed in District 31-5A, posting a 14-13 overall record. Memorial will lean on its pitching experience early on, Cortinas said.
The Mustangs will be competing in the new-look District 31-5A, which now features Edinburg Vela and PSJA North thrown into the mix, along with the two Sharyland schools and crosstown rivals McAllen High and McAllen Rowe.
“Pitching-wise is our strength, and we’ll have some good arms. I’ve touched base with them a little bit and I think arm-wise, we’ll be good,” he said. “We have to work at hitting and I know we’re in a super tough district, probably the toughest in the Valley. It’s going to be difficult to hit facing good pitching day-in and day-out, I understand that, but we need to find a way to hopefully put more runs on the board for our staff. Our staff again is our strength and pretty deep, so I think we’ll be OK if we can put some runs on the board.”
