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Brownsville native Torres to be inducted into UTRGV Hall of Honor

Claire Cruz, Valley Morning Star, Harlingen, Texas
·2 min read

Sep. 19—The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley announced its 2022 Athletics Hall of Fame and Hall of Honor class Tuesday, and Brownsville native Rene Torres was selected as an inductee.

Torres is the sole honoree that "earned induction" into the UTRGV Hall of Honor. He played baseball for Pan American College from 1966-69, receiving a scholarship after serving as the starting shortstop for the legendary Brownsville High state semifinalist team.

"It is a great privilege to join such a list of prestigious Hall of Honor inductees. I have always dreamt of reaching this point, but I never envisioned that this would become a reality," Torres said in a press release.

Torres was the starting center fielder for Pan American College for three years. He committed just one error in his career and set a program record for most consecutive games without an error, playing perfect defense in 46 straight games. Torres helped the team reach the NCAA district playoffs in 1968 and the NAIA playoffs in 1966. Additionally, he was on the freshman basketball team in 1966.

After his playing days, Torres worked as a sports historian and was a professor at The University of Texas at Brownsville and Texas Southmost College. He was inducted into the Rio Grande Valley Sports Hall of Fame in 2007 and is a member of the Leo Najo Baseball Hall of Fame in Mission, and the Laredo Latin American International Sports Hall of Fame. Torres has been honored and recognized in Brownsville and Valleywide for his impact in spreading the history of RGV baseball with presentations and written work.

The 2022 UTRGV Athletics Hall of Fame inductees are the 1987-90 women's cross country team, former men's basketball player Jim Board, former women's tennis player Barbara (Barrera) Gonzales and former baseball player Joe Hernandez.

The class was initially selected in the summer of 2020, but the induction ceremony was delayed due to COVID-19. The induction luncheon is scheduled for 11 a.m. Feb. 19 at the UTRGV Ballroom.