J.C. Snyder played his entire freshman year of college baseball with a broken hand, only taking batting practice before games but still earned all-region honors and attracted attention from professional scouts. That's an example of his toughness. His hand, since healed, now helps push his 24-year-old sister's wheelchair after she was paralyzed in an accident where her truck flipped seven times after skidding at 75 miles per hour in the early morning hours of Jan. 10, 2010. Her back was broken when she was ejected during one of the flips and collided with a wooden fence post which was ripped from the ground and carried 20 feet. That's his perspective.

"I've never taken anything for granted after her accident," J.C. said. "She is the most amazing person I know."

While baseball has its moments of glory and you're forced to overcome adversity to succeed in the sport, Snyder and his family have learned that life does not completely revolve around the game – despite its prominence with his father, Cory, having spent nine seasons playing Major League Baseball for the Cleveland Indians, Chicago White Sox, Toronto Blue Jays, San Francisco Giants and Los Angeles Dodgers. "Baseball is important to us, but after the accident we realized that it's not everything," he said.

READ ABOUT AMBERLEY SNYDER'S INSPIRATIONAL STORY HERE (CASPER STAR-TRIBUNE)

J.C., now a senior playing and thriving for Angelo State after transferring from Brigham Young this season, has had opportunities to sign a Major League Baseball contract and then other times when leaving the game all together could have been an option. He's been a team MVP, an all-region selection and then a player who found himself not in the lineup. Through it all, he's never lost perspective and drive. He's also never lost the support of his sister.

"J.C. is one of my heroes in life," said his sister, Amberley, who continues to ride horses and is now a student teacher and a motivational speaker whose message is one about not giving up on life. "He is a person I look to for advice, comfort and support. I know that I would not have handled my life challenges as well as I have if not for having my brother to lean on when I need him. Words cannot express how proud I am of my brother. He has fought through hard times in baseball and kept working towards his goals. J.C. is not only my brother but one of my very best friends. He has been one of the people I can lean on when times are rough. J.C. is a very genuine person and cares so much about the people he loves."
 
Success and adversity in baseball can both be fleeting, but as Snyder has discovered belief and determination can carry you through. A baseball journey where he has been drafted and benched has led him to Angelo State where he leads the Rams and Lone State Conference with 16 doubles and is second on the team with a .348 batting average and 46 total hits. He has five home runs, 20 RBI and 14 multi-hit games for the Rams this season after transferring from BYU where he had eight hits in 41 at-bats as a junior through the 53-game 2014 schedule. He currently has the 23rd most doubles in the nation after watching from the dugout for most of last season in Provo, Utah.

"I really just wanted more playing time and a better fit," said Snyder of transferring from BYU to ASU. "I lucked out coming here."

"I'm very proud of him. It's been a tough go for him thus far and he has overcome a lot," Cory Snyder said. "He is an amazing young man. He has never been someone to give up on his dreams. He just needed to be given the chance to show what he can do. He has the drive and the God-given talent to play baseball at any level he chooses. The quote in our home all my kids live by is, 'Hard work beats talent, when talent doesn't work hard.' All my kids have amazing drive and work ethic, but it's up to them to be the best they can be."
 
Embracing the Journey
Snyder started his collegiate career at Salt Lake Community College and earned all-region defensive team honors as a freshman before hitting .284 with eight doubles, three triples and three home runs as a sophomore. Snyder was told by the Washington Nationals that they were going to take him in the 12th round of the draft following his freshman season, but he wanted to continue playing college baseball. "I had played that entire season with a broken hand and thought I could get better with another year of school," Snyder said. He would get drafted officially for the first time in the 2013 MLB Draft in the 36th round by the Mariners after his sophomore season but once again decided to stay in school. "I felt like I still needed time to mature and work on baseball," he said. This time though he would be playing at BYU where his father went to school and was an All-American. Cory, who hit 149 home runs and played in 1,068 major league games, is a baseball legend at BYU and won a silver medal playing for the United States in the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles. BYU seemed to be perfect at first for J.C., but following the 2014 season he determined that another change was needed. He started reaching out to Division II programs and received interest from Kevin Brooks who saw Snyder's potential to help the Rams.

"He was a guy that I could tell right away that he would fit in with our program," Brooks said. "J.C. has a lot of fun playing the game and always has a smile on his face at the ball park. He's also a guy that puts in a lot of work and it has paid off for him this year. He got here in the fall and increased his strength and he's had some really big hits for us this season."

Snyder started his senior season with the Rams by going 2-for-4 in the season-opener at McMurry and has already had three games with two doubles. He had an eight-game hitting streak at one point this season which included going 4-for-4 with two doubles against Texas A&M International and he reached base in a team-leading 22 consecutive games. He currently leads the Lone Star Conference in doubles and with 77 total bases.

"My swing has always been able to find the gap for some reason," Snyder said. "My approach this season has been to attack early in the count and hit the pitches that I can handle. I've been looking away and haven't been trying to force the issue or press. I know that I'm going to get good pitches to hit with that approach and am ready to connect when I swing."

While he has thrived this season at the plate and in the field as a right fielder and third baseman, his path and his family's story is one that has put success and struggles in perspective.

"I haven't always been a guy who has a high average or is on the field all the time," Snyder said. "I know what the other side is like when you're struggling or not getting an opportunity. I'm enjoying my opportunities right now, but I also feel it's important for me to be a leader this year and help my teammates understand that things can turn around. I've watched other guys in my career who were having success and have tried to mimic their preparation and attitude toward the game to help me become successful too. I hope I'm a good role model for the younger guys and can help them by being a good teammate.
 
A Pro's Son
J.C. grew up not fully understanding what his father was accomplishing in his professional career. It wasn't until his friends started asking for his dad's autograph that he realized exactly who Cory was to others – instead of just the guy he knew as "dad". That has changed over the years as J.C. has grown up and learned how difficult the game of baseball is and what it took for Cory to reach the level he did.

"Being around that level of baseball from an early age makes you appreciate what you can accomplish through the game but also how hard it is to get there," Snyder said. "I've really appreciated what he did the last couple of years because now I understand how difficult this game is. For him to play in the pros and succeed like he did is really special. Growing up he was always just my dad and I can look back now and say that I really didn't understand how amazing what he did with baseball was."

Cory, who played from 1986-94, is now the hitting coach of the Tacoma Rainiers who are the Seattle Mariners Triple-A affiliate and has imparted knowledge of the game and life to J.C. and his siblings.

"I have always preached to my boys, routine and approach is the key," Cory said. "Try to always drive the ball through the middle with hard line drives. Trust your hard work and enjoy playing the game. But most importantly he just needed someone to believe in him. I have always told my kids, you have all been given the God given talent to do something. When you know what it is, set your goals high and work hard to accomplish them. Don't ever give up fight to the end.  Don't expect anything to be given to you."
 
Focused and Motivated
J.C. Snyder and the Rams have 11 regular-season games remaining starting with a 6 p.m. game tonight against St. Mary's before traveling to Canyon for a three-game set against West Texas A&M to wrap up their road schedule. After this weekend ASU will host McMurry next Monday and then finish off the regular season with weekend series against Texas A&M-Kingsville and Eastern New Mexico at Foster Field.

Snyder plays the game of baseball with the lessons he's learned from an early age from his father and with the support of his mother, Tina, and siblings. He's a senior who has embraced his journey and motivates those around him by remaining positive regardless of the situation. His achievements at Angelo State followed some challenging moments but they also exemplify his sister's favorite quote.

"Life's real failure is when you did not realize how close you were to success when you gave up!"

J.C. has not given up and the Rams are a better team because of him.