With the COVID-19 outbreak forcing the cancelation of all high school spring sports, local high seniors were forced to deal with the abrupt reality that their prep careers were over. A group of these student-athletes were members of the Cincinnati Reds RBI program, many of whom were also regulars at the P&G MLB Cincinnati Reds Youth Academy over the years. With our Senior Spotlight Series, the Reds want to recognize these players for their efforts and wish them well in their future endeavors, both on and off the field.

Adopting the Mamba Mentality from one of his famous role models, the late Kobe Bryant, Alvin Bowers has let nothing stop him from chasing his dream of playing college baseball and being drafted in the Major Leagues.

The Gamble Montessori graduate checked the first item off the list after being recruited to play baseball at West Virginia State University.

“Words cannot describe the feeling of committing to West Virginia State to play baseball,” Bowers said. “The first thought that came to my head was I came a long way from almost quitting baseball to now about to play collegiate baseball. I was jumping around with so much enthusiasm after I signed that letter because all my hard work had finally paid off. I was very emotional because there were times where I wasn’t sure if I was going to be a college baseball player, so signing that letter was very special.”

When Bowers first started baseball as a youngster, it was clear to his parents and coaches that he was one of the more naturally gifted players. Despite being an immediate standout, and in part because he was one, Bowers began to lose interest in baseball by age 11. At that age, the game was slow and he wasn’t seeing any challenge when playing, so he considered quitting.

But then he picked up competitive baseball with kids from all over the state. That’s when things changed.

“The game started getting faster and the players were bigger, stronger, faster and flat-out better,” Bowers said. “Then I realized there are challenges in this game and I need to get better. So I started to fall in love with the game.”

Always someone who has needed and embraced a challenge, Bowers was locked in from that point forward. He started to take baseball seriously and became laser-focused on improving his craft. He joined Reds RBI and spent three years with the program. This shift in mentality helped get him to where he is today, but it didn’t come without a cost.

“It’s hard to balance because I’ve lost some of my friends, because even if I’m not playing, all I do is watch and think about baseball,” Bowers said. “I hardly gave people around me attention because I wanted to find ways to get better. I still do that to this day. But my friends now understand how important baseball is to me, and so they understand that I’m really determined to be the best baseball player I can be.”

That’s not to say he can never have fun. 

“Alvin is a hard worker on and off the field and gave up basketball his senior year to concentrate on baseball,” said Jim Bella, one of Bowers’ RBI instructors. “But while Alvin plays hard, you can always count on him to keep his teammates and coaches loose.”

While his love for the game didn’t always allow him to have time for friends, it did not keep him from lending his time to others. In fact, it became the perfect outlet to help others who loved the game like he did.

A regular at the Reds Youth Academy since 2017, Bowers maximized everything the Academy offers. Developing his game was an obvious benefit, but the opportunity to improve himself as a person and help younger kids was what he enjoyed most. 

“I loved being at the Academy,” Bowers said. “I attended many seminars because they displayed lots of information for ways to better myself on and off the field. I tried to volunteer as much as I could and help kids learn the fundamentals of baseball because it’s always good to share your knowledge of baseball with other people. You never know if you might help others improve themselves.”

Bowers did that and more. All RBI players are required to fulfill 15 service hours and attend three educational seminars. Student-athletes that go above and beyond these requirements -- making at least 35 All-Star visits to the Academy for instructor-led programs (outside of team practices), performing at least 25 hours of community service and participating in five or more educational seminars -- become RBI All-Stars. 

That’s exactly what Bowers did. 

“It was a goal for me because it was my last year in the program,” he said. “It was important to accomplish this year because I felt like that would be one way I could potentially leave my mark on the Reds Academy.”

Bowers clearly left a positive imprint during his time at the Academy. And now with his college baseball dream realized, next up is the MLB Draft.