Nick Cole

ncole@tennessean.com

The pressure of pinch-hitting with the game on the line in the most important contest of Vanderbilt's baseball season might have been too much for most freshmen.

But not for Ro Coleman.

Growing up in Englewood, one of the nation's roughest areas on the south side of Chicago, gave the 5-foot-5 infielder perspective on his regional-winning single against Oregon on Sunday.

"It's a little different here," Coleman said. "Like when I'm in a car, I'm just used to always looking out the windows making sure someone isn't trying to rob me or anything. I love being here. I feel like I can relax and not have to worry about anything."

Vanderbilt coach Tim Corbin, who is quick to praise the freshman's work ethic and mentality, is glad to have him here.

"You just couldn't ask for a better guy to finish the game," an emotional Corbin said after the hit that advanced his Commodores to the Super Regional that begins Friday against Stanford.

"The kid and what he stands for, what he's been through with his dad — the fact that he's at Vanderbilt University going to school is the best thing in the world."

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Ro's father, Roynal Coleman, watched his son take the 95 mph fastball to the opposite field from his computer screen at home. Just like he had taught him.

"I saw the kid throwing a good fastball and I thought, 'That's his speed, he likes that,' " said Roynal, who is a hitting instructor in Chicago. "I got so many texts after he got that hit. It was so emotional. I was ecstatic. What a wonderful feeling."

A former Cleveland Indians prospect, Roynal has been the greatest influence in his son's adolescent life — through both his positive actions and the negative ones. Having played with the likes of Manny Ramirez over his three-year pro career, Roynal passed on his love for baseball, tirelessly teaching Ro the game since age 5 in hopes that he would follow his footsteps by using baseball as a ticket out of the neighborhood.

But Roynal spent three of Ro's most formative years in prison on drug-related charges.

"The economy is rough and I grew up in a rough environment," Roynal offered as explanation.

Devastated by not being able to see his son, Roynal made daily contact by phone or letter, encouraging Ro to stay focused on school and baseball.

"That was tough on me and my mom over those three years," Ro said. "Especially as I was trying to make the transition from eighth grade into high school."

Ro was without his father from eighth grade until the summer before his junior year of high school.

Rising above

Ro attended high school at Simeon Career Academy, where he served as a three-year baseball team captain and earned all-state honors by hitting .525 his senior season.

"I was never one to get involved with gangs or doing bad things," he said. "Baseball really helped me stay off the streets and stay focused on my studies.

"I've always considered myself a leader. I never wanted to be a follower. I have a little brother, too, and I didn't want him to see me growing up and getting involved with that stuff. I want to be a positive role model for him."

A good heart and good morals didn't necessarily keep Coleman safe as he ventured past 79th Street, an area two blocks from school that he described as "very dangerous."

"You just have to know the right places to be and where not to be," he said. "You always have to be watching your back and aware of your surroundings."

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Coleman got to Vanderbilt because of the Amateur City Elite baseball program.

Created by the Chicago White Sox to help inner-city youth baseball players develop and get connected with college coaches and recruiters, ACE has had seven players selected in the major-league draft, and it placed an additional 40 in college on baseball scholarships since its inception in 2007.

It was as a member of this program that Coleman learned about Vanderbilt. Coleman met Corbin during the summer of his sophomore season at the Fort Myers Perfect Game showcase as a member of a travel ball team.

He researched the school following his initial meeting with Corbin and said it instantly became his dream school.

"I felt like this was the place to be," Coleman said of Vanderbilt. "The coaches, the environment — it just felt like home. There was no other place for me to be."

Although he was selected by the White Sox in the 40th round of last year's draft, his heart was set on following that dream to Nashville.

Coleman has struggled at the plate much of his freshman season. On May 6, his average was just .150. But since then, he's hit .476, raising his average to .218.

This weekend his dad will be in the stands for his third series this season as the Commodores are two wins away from their second trip to the College World Series.

"It's had its ups and downs," Coleman said of the season. "But I just have to thank God for putting me in this situation. My teammates, my dad, the coaches — they've just been great in keeping me confident and telling me that it's going to get better and taking pressure off me. I just have to keep working. Lately it has been going great."

Reach Nick Cole at 615-259-8010 and on Twitter @ncole6.

SUPER REGIONAL

VANDERBILT (44-18) vs. STANFORD (34-24)

• When: Noon Friday, 2 p.m. Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday (if necessary)

• TV/radio: ESPN2/560-AM, 95.9-FM