For the members of the 1949 Bowie Bears baseball team, the 60th anniversary since their Texas State Baseball Championship takes them back to a time when playing baseball was all that mattered.

“All we ever wanted to do was play ball,” Gus Sambrano, former infielder, said. “Not a lot of people know about our history but it’ll be good for everyone to know what we’ve gone through these past sixty years.”

Now members of the 1949 Bowie Baseball team, which won the first ever UIL state baseball championship, have a new reason to celebrate. A feat once unmatched by any other El Paso baseball team has now been met by the Socorro Bulldogs baseball team.

“I’m proud to say that our record of being the only baseball team in El Paso with such a victory has been matched by the Socorro Bulldogs baseball team who just won the Texas State ,” Sambrano said. “I think it’ll be an ongoing tradition in El Paso .”

In an awards ceremony from 4 to 9 p.m. July 18 at Bowie High School, members of the Socorro baseball team will present awards to the 1949 Bowie Bears baseball team, something Socorro baseball coach Chris Forbes sees as a bridging of generations.

“Matching the team’s victory was a pretty big feat for us,” Forbes said. “I know they’ll enjoy honoring the 1949 Bowie Baseball team in that way because they have always been supportive of us throughout our season.”

The idea to recognize the team members on their 60th anniversary came when Reyes Mata, director of Del Pueblo Press, began looking for candidates to recognize throughout the community.

“What we like to do here is go out and talk to the everyday people,” Mata said. “I heard about the team and the adversity they overcame and I knew this was more than just a story. I knew they had to be recognized.”

After rounding up the surviving eight players, Mata and his organization began one-on-one interviews to get their story. With support from the community, the players will be awarded championship rings and trophies. Members of deceased family members will also attend and the son of Nemo Herrera, the 1949 Bowie baseball coach, will also be there to accept an award on behalf of his father.

At a time where discrimination was rampant, the players of the Bowie Bear baseball team beat out teams from across Texas and secured the Texas State Baseball Championship in 1949 with their win against Stephen H. Austin High School .

Sambrano attributes the team’s success with the guidance of coach Herrera.

“I remember driving into towns and seeing signs that said, ‘No dogs, No Mexicans allowed here,’” Sambrano said. “We stayed in a storage unit while other teams stayed in hotels. Coach Herrera prepared us to ignore all that and stay focused. That’s how we kept strong and won.”

While Mata hopes the history of the 1949 Bowie Bears baseball team impacts El Pasoans, he also hopes it can do something else.

“I’ve extended an invitation for any Austin dignitary to attend the ceremony and try and make it right,” he said. “It’s a way for them to say to the players, ‘we’re sorry for what you’ve been through.’ "

Mata has yet to receive a response, but remains hopeful that someone will respond.

“Once they’ve declined, I can’t say they’re racist, but I also can’t say that they aren’t,” Mata said.

The eight surviving members of the 1949 Bowie Bears baseball team might not have good memories of their recognition after they won the Texas State Championship, but Mata knows will be a good start.

“They were basically thrown out of the field,” Mata said. “Once the game was over with, they were forgotten about. We’re glad to see that they now have a tie with other kids who are making El Paso history as well.”

Tickets are on sale for $20. Proceeds from the ticket sales will go to the Bowie Alumni Association. There will be a fundraising event from 5:30-7:30 p.m. July 9 at the Camino Real gallery for anyone wanting to purchase tickets or become sponsors. For information: (915) 999-1460.