Joseph Townsend couldn’t believe what he was seeing.

The head baseball coach at Thomas Jefferson High School was supposed to be paying attention to the game his Raiders were in the middle of playing. Instead, Townsend’s neck was craned 180 degrees in the direction of Jefferson’s softball field where he saw a father hitting hard, laser ground balls to a short, scrawny preteen.

“Who — is that kid?,” Townsend asked aloud.

“Oh, you must be talking about my little brother,” freshman shortstop and 2014 Jefferson graduate Niko Delacruz called back. “That’s Mason.”

Five years later Mason Delacruz is headed into his senior season as the captain of Thomas Jefferson’s baseball program. After three seasons of hitting better than .320, he took the next step in his baseball career as he signed his scholarship offer to play baseball at Washington State University.

Delacruz made his official visit to the university the weekend of Nov. 11. He said it was the Cougars’ consistent dedication that made his decision so easy.

“This is a dream come true,” Delacruz said. “They were the first to recruit me, first ones to make me an offer. The coaching staff gave a clear plan on how they would use me and how they could make me a better player. It’s everything I could ask for in continuing my baseball career.”

It was a sun-soaked afternoon in April when Townsend first caught a glimpse of Delacruz.

Nick Delacruz wasn’t just hitting ground balls to his middle son that day, he was hitting rockets at Mason Delacruz.

Townsend said he couldn’t believe the focus and soft hands the then 12-year-old Delacruz had when fielding ground balls.

“I couldn’t believe what I was seeing,” Townsend recalled. “Here was this extremely skinny, undersized kid just soaking up, absorbing these shots his dad was sending his way. Mason didn’t miss a single one. I remember how soft his hands were. At that point, I had to make sure he ended up on my team.”

There was no question. Mason Delacruz was always going to be a Raider.

Not because it’s a rich, storied program. Not because of any influence Townsend may or may not have had.

Mason Delacruz was headed to Jefferson because it’s where his big brother Niko Delacruz went.

Nick Delacruz said Mason has always looked up to Niko. So, when Niko began playing baseball, Mason was right behind him.

Just like Niko, Mason was brought up to varsity immediately, where he played right along side his brother. And, just like Niko did two years earlier as a freshman, Mason’s varsity success soared overnight.

“Mason always wanted to do what his big brother was doing,” Nick Delacruz said. “They’ve always been supportive of one another. There’s always been a bit of sibling rivalry, but it’s always been in the motivational way. I think we were all a little surprised when Mason turned out to be the better baseball talent.”

Mason Delacruz has some big shoes to fill entering his freshman season on Jefferson’s varsity team.

His uncle, his dad and his older brother all saw success in baseball before Mason Delacruz got his shot.

It was through hearing stories of his uncle’s glory days on the diamond that first sparked Mason Delacruz’s interest in the game.

“I guess he was a pretty good player from what I’ve heard,” Mason Delacruz said. “My dad played the game a little, then it was getting to watch Niko start. I always felt the game was like a family tradition, so I naturally wanted to be a part of that.”

But as Mason Delacruz’s love for the game grew, he encountered some challenges.

The first was his size. Mason Delacruz was short. Instead of worrying about how his lack of size would hurt his chances for a baseball career, he worked to perfect his defensive skills, which didn’t take long to master.

There was still one glaring problem. Mason Delacruz couldn’t hit.

“Coming into his freshman year, I was fully aware of his struggles with hitting,” Townsend said. “Naturally it’s hard to hit a round ball with a round bat. That was the one question I had to answer when Mason came into the program. Do I risk putting this freshman, who doesn’t hit, on my varsity squad?”

It’s the kind of question that gets coaches fired if they get it wrong. Townsend took the risk anyway.

Townsend wasn’t the only one to put all his chips on Mason Delacruz. Nick Delacruz went all in, too.

Mason Delacruz said he wasn’t happy after his sophomore season where he hit .263 with six RBI in 16 games. He began to beg his father to let him get his driver’s license.

Nick Delacruz said he had no idea where the sudden outburst and need for a driver’s license came from.

“At first we had no idea, we didn’t really think to ask why,” Nick Delacruz said. “We kind of assumed it was because his brother got his, so we were like, ‘Oh, he’s probably just trying to keep up with Niko.’”

As it turns out, Mason Delacruz desperately wanted his license because of baseball.

“I only wanted it so I could drive myself to the batting cages,” Mason Delacruz said. “My parents worked and Niko was always driving to baseball. I wanted to be able to go to the cages on my own without annoying anyone.”

Mason Delacruz got his license shortly thereafter, and he went to the batting cages day after day after day for hours on end.

A tough decision for his parents, followed by relentless dedication, yielded results.

Delacruz rebounded to hit .400 with eight RBI in 24 games. Nick Delacruz said the family was reluctant to let their middle son get his license so early, but he said it was easy once Mason explained the reasoning.

“We were kind of confused,” Nick Delacruz said. “But he said he wanted to be able to go to the batting cages on his own. Because if he was going to be a college player, he needed to be a better hitter. As a parent, how do you say no to that? I think the batting cages was the first place he went the day he got his license.”

During his first two season with the Raiders, Mason Delacruz was the backup at the shortstop position to none other than Niko Delacruz.

It’s in part why Mason Delacruz didn’t make as many appearances his first two seasons. But once Niko graduated in 2014, it was time to pass the reigns to his little brother.

Niko Delacruz went on to play baseball at Bellevue College. Niko Delacruz said it was bitter sweet to pass the shortstop position at Jefferson to his younger brother.

“It was kind of bitter sweet,” Niko Delacruz said. “I really enjoyed passing the torch to Mason, knowing that the position would be in good hands.”

Life has come full circle for Joseph Townsend, Mason Delacruz and the Raiders baseball program.

For Townsend, that scrawny 12-year-old he saw taking ground balls on the softball field that April afternoon enters into his final season with Jefferson, with plans on playing baseball at Washington State in 2018.

Like Niko Delacruz did his senior season, Mason Delacruz will prepare for transition to the next chapter of his baseball life. With that comes helping mold Townsend’s next shortstop, not named Delacruz.

For Jefferson, it prepares to say farewell to Mason Delacruz, it’s phenom shortstop.

It’s too early to tell who will take the reigns from Mason Delacruz in 2018. Townsend said it will be hard to let Mason Delacruz go. Mainly because he’s watched his baseball life progress from start to finish.

Townsend said he won’t be done for long, though, as Drew Delacruz, the youngest of the three Delacruz boys, will be coming soon.

“Mason has so much baseball left,” Townsend said. “We’re all so proud of him. He’s gone from a player who almost didn’t make it, to a scholarship player. He’s the kind of kid who sets his mind to something, then he just does it.

“I’m sad to see him go, but I’m excited because we’ve got their youngest brother, who is also very talented, coming into the program very soon.”