Sergio "Keko" Guerrero, Class of 1993
Professional Baseball Player

1993 McHi Yearbook Photo

Keko was a three-sport standout for McAllen High School, but it was on the baseball diamond where he earned All-Conference, All-District and All-Valley honors.

After high school, Keko attended Laredo Community College in Laredo, Texas and since then, has played professionally for the Milwaukee Brewers organization, several teams in the Mexican Professional Baseball League, and the Edinburg Roadrunners of the Texas-Lousiana League (now the Central Professional League).

Playing in 2001 for the Texas-Louisiana League champion Edinburg Roadrunners, Keko hit .312 and led the team in hits and doubles, while making the league's All-Star team at second base. In an interview with the McAllen Monitor newspaper after the season, Keko said, "When I won those rings (playing with the Milwaukee organization), I was injured. So this is one of the special ones because I played the whole year and I was able to contribute. Plus, it was in front of the home crowd, so you couldn't ask for anything else."

Sergio's 2001 Statistics with the Edinburg Roadrunners


PLAYER                      AVG   G  AB   R   H 2B 3B HR RBI  BB  SO  SB CS   SLG   OBP  E
Guerrero, Sergio,2B        .312  89 359  52 112 27  2  7  47  21  29   7  3  .457  .357 11

After his success with Edinburg in 2001, Keko headed back to the Mexican League, playing second base for the Campeche Pirates until August 2002, when he re-joined the Edinburg Roadrunners for the stretch run of their 2002 campaign.

Click here to read a June 2001 article from the McAllen Monitor profiling Keko's baseball career up to that point.

Return to McHi Famous Alumni

Our sincere appreciation to Mr. Rolando Garza, McHi teacher, for suggesting that we add Keko to our list of famous alumni.

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Theodore “Ted” Otto Uhlaender, a graduate of McAllen High School, and Charles “Charlie” Wayne Vaughan, a Brownsville High School graduate, are the only two former Valley high school players listed on the all-time register of players and managers.

Uhlaender, an outfielder, made his first major league appearance in 1965 with the Minnesota Twins. He also played for the Cleveland Indians and Cincinnati Reds during his eight years in the majors. Uhlaender, who had a .263 career batting average in 898 at-bats, appeared in the 1972 World Series with the Reds.

Uhlaender is currently the first base coach for the Indians.

Vaughan, a left-handed pitcher, had two brief stints with the Atlanta Braves. He posted a 1-0 all-time won-loss record. Vaughan appeared in one game with the Braves in 1966 and one game in 1969, before an injury cut his career short.

Current Edinburg Roadrunner second baseman Sergio “Keko” Guerrero, a 1993 McHi graduate, also aspires to play in the major leagues. Guerrero, now 26, was an All-Valley selection during his career with the Bulldogs.

After graduating from McHi, Guerrero attended Laredo Junior College for two years before being selected in the 20th round by the Milwaukee Brewers in the June 1995 draft. He signed with the Brewers and was assigned to the Class A Helena Brewers of the Pioneer League. Guerrero spent the 1996 season between Helena and the Stockton Ports.

Always a solid hitter in high school and college, Guerrero batted .302 in 41 games in ’95 and .318 in 57 games in ’96. He also played for Stockton in ’97, and split time with Double A El Paso of the Texas League. In ’98, Guerrero started the season at El Paso and then moved up to Triple A Louisville. The ’99 season found Guerrero playing for Reno, Nev., in the Western League after being released by the Brewers.

Guerrero joined the Mexican League last season and played for Reynosa, where he hit .335 and was a reliable player in the infield. He was released just before the start of the 2001 season and soon caught on with Nuevo Laredo Tecolotes, also of the Mexican League. Guerrero was released from Laredo after two weeks and then joined the Edinburg Roadrunners.

“I got caught up in the numbers game at Laredo,” Guerrero said. “We were on a six-game losing streak and the owner wanted the manager to sign a closer. Since I was the last one signed, I was the first one to go. Teams in the Mexican League can only have five foreign players on their roster.”

Guerrero didn’t want to wait around to see if another Mexican League team would sign him, so he quickly joined the Roadrunners.

“It’s every baseball players dream to make it in the big leagues,” Guerrero said. “I had those same dreams. It seemed like every time I got close, an injury slowed my progress. That’s been one of the reasons I feel I never made it. That’s been my biggest disappointment.

“Every year I had some kind of problem,” he added. “I became labeled as accident prone. I believe that’s what really hurt me. One year it was my knee, then my back. Then the Brewers signed a ‘bonus baby’ and they released me.”

The Brewers were never willing to trade Guerrero and give him a shot with another organization.

Roadrunners manager Chad Tredaway said he’s glad to have Guerrero on the team.

“Keko is the first player I wanted to sign when I got the manager’s job,” Tredaway said. “He signed with Laredo instead. When I heard he was available again, I signed him.”

Guerrero is currently playing second base for the Roadrunners. He’s still getting used to his new teammates and a new league.

“No matter what people say, the Texas-Louisiana League is a good league,” Guerrero said. “There are some good players in the league. I’m going to keep working at it and see what happens next year.”

Guerrero said he’s always had great support from his family, particularly his parents.

“It’s been a big plus having all the support from my family and friends,” Guerrero said. “Right now, money is not everything. I know players want to make as much as they can. If I can’t make it as a player, I want to coach, whether it’s in professional or high school baseball.

“I’ve had offers to coach from several major league teams already (Milwaukee, Colorado, Los Angeles, San Francisco), but I’m not ready to give up as a player,” he added. “I feel like I’m in my prime and can play. Someday I’ll make my choice.”

Guerrero believes that if he can stay healthy, he may be able to join a team in the Mexican League again next season. At 5-feet-10, 195 pounds, Guerrero said he can still play and is keeping his options open. He’s been fairly free of injuries the past two seasons.

“I’m going to test the waters again next year,” Guerrero said. “I want to stay in baseball.”
With his professional baseball experience and being bilingual, it appears Guerrero will have a bright future in the sport once his playing days are over. An influx of Latin American players into major league baseball could pave the way for Guerrero. If he doesn’t make it as a player, he may some day be coaching in the league.

“Baseball is about being in the right place at the right time,” Guerrero said. “You’ve got to also be lucky. You’ve got to know the right people to make it in the major league. There are a lot of players out there with the same dream — major league baseball.”