Anthony Chavez set his foot on third base when the thunderous crack of the bat sent the ball like a missile toward him. He reacted on instinct and pushed off his left leg to charge forward to catch the ball.

As he planted his foot, a sharp sting shot through his knee. Sweat dripped down his face as he tried to steady himself.

But with the ball still uncaught, Anthony’s job as third baseman remained unfinished. Despite the pain, he reached out to catch the ball when his knee collapsed beneath him.

Anthony’s mind raced 100 miles an hour as the pain became unbearable. In that instant, one thought drowned out all the others: “That’s it. My baseball season is over.”

From hearing fans and teammates cheer him on as he ran bases to even hearing the MRI machine in his dreams, Anthony described this chapter of his life as one of the darkest and loneliest he ever faced.

Anthony, who has been playing baseball since the age of three, said that although his knee previously had issues, he never thought this incident would happen.

“I heard a pop and looked at the pitcher. We just looked at each other, and we knew it was over,” Anthony said. “I tried to play through it, but I knew something was not right. All that was in my mind was that it might have been my last game ever.”

His mom, Nohemi Chavez, documented his injuries on TikTok. She says she has gotten quite the following on her account, with over 650,000 TikTok followers and over 3 million cumulative views with videos covering Anthony’s injury.

“It helped me now, especially, I think it helped Anthony now, watching it back and you see, like he overcame that situation, I remember being there, and then I didn’t record a lot of it, but I remember sitting there,” Nohemi said. “When he looks back at where he was and where he is going, you can see the growth—he has gotten stronger, better.”

His dad, Daniel Chavez, taught him from an early age the value of perseverance. He pushed Anthony to give it his all, not only on the field but in the classroom, leading by example and reminding him that setbacks did not define him.

“Coming to Del Valle after a rough chapter was the best move,” Daniel said. “I always had faith he had come back 100%, but I knew it would take time. Even now, he is not fully there yet, but I understood the process— and what it was going to take—better than he did.”

Anthony, who started his high school baseball career at Pebble Hills High School, had to transfer to Del Valle High School due to what he says was unfair treatment on and off the field.

“I was not in the right environment there to heal. If I stayed, I would have stayed stuck mentally,” Anthony said. “When I got to Del Valle, the coaches were welcoming right away. It felt like that is where I was supposed to be.” 

The transfer made Anthony work harder and gave him extra motivation to give it his all on the field. That was until he tore his ACL on April 7, 2025, at a game against Hanks High School. It made Anthony not only battle with his physical health, but also his mental health.

“I started panicking. Tears just started falling, and I did not say a word, but inside, I was fighting everything,” Anthony said.

But even after surgery was over, he still faced one of the toughest battles — waiting. While he was recovering, Del Valle went on to win the 5A Bi-District Championship. From the dugout and the stands, Anthony watched it all unfold; each win being a reminder of where he should have been.

“Seeing my teammates playing, celebrating, I was happy for them, but at the same time, I felt like I should’ve been out there,” Anthony said. “I felt like something was holding me back, and I could not do anything about it.” 

“Inside, I wanted to quit. I said to myself, ‘I give up’,” Anthony said. “The number one reason I did not stop fighting was for my brother, who looks up to me. I have been playing baseball since I was 3 years old. It has always been everything to me, so when I got hurt, it felt like everything was taken away.”

But to give up meant letting his younger brother down. For Anthony, that feeling did not stop there—it carried into the relationships he valued most, both in and out of baseball, shaped by the same sense of loyalty and connection he held with those closest to him.

Additionally, in 2024, Anthony lost his close friend Edson Adan Sotelo to suicide, which Anthony said left a grieving hole in his heart. Due to this, Anthony wears at least one teal-colored accessory when he plays baseball as a symbol for suicide prevention and tribute to his best friend.

“It was a shock just knowing how happy he always seemed. He was the life of the party, the happiest, funniest guy you had ever met. And then, the next day, he was gone,” Anthony said.

Anthony spent 8 months in recovery, consisting of ACL and meniscus surgery as well as physical therapy.

To soothe the mental toll of surgery and recovery, he took an interest in photography, photographing events like former WWE superstar Sin Cara, now Cinta de Oro, and the El Paso Locomotives.

“I wouldn’t say (photography) really helped me, like, as in a sense physically, but mentally yes,” Anthony said. “It distracted me from everything that was going on around me and even with myself. 

Now back on the field, Anthony is playing his senior season at Del Valle High School, with offers from colleges across the U.S. and is expected to graduate from his high school in late May.

Diego Cruz-Castruita is a photographer and may be reached at [email protected].