Jim Lopez

Jim Lopez was born in Colorado on April 30, 1949, and since his father was serving in the United States Air Force, the family moved about every three years. That included two separate stints in Panama when Lopez was a child, giving him an opportunity to play baseball year-round.

Lopez first played organized baseball at seven years of age, earning all-star honors in various little leagues as his family continued to move. He graduated from Holy Cross High School in Delaware in 1967 and Adams State College in Colorado in 1972. He earned his law degree from University of Puget Sound School of Law in 1978 and practiced law in Tacoma for 37 years before retiring in 2015.

While Lopez’s success in the courtroom was tremendous, his dominance on the mound may have even been more impressive. He has played with the Washington Senators, Tacoma Cardinals and Tacoma Cascades in the Pierce County Roy Hobbs Senior Baseball Leagues in selected years spanning 1990-2014, including 17 Roy Hobbs World Series appearances. He has also played in the Seattle Puget Sound Senior Baseball League in selected years spanning 1999-2014 with the Seattle Rainiers, Silver Foxes and Tacoma Tugs.

Overall, Lopez compiled a 164-48 record between 1990 and 2014, including three no-hitters. Perhaps his three best years came in 2004, 2005 and 2006. In 2004 he went 15-0 with 12 complete games, four shutouts and a 1.38 earned run average. Somehow he improved on that the following year with a record of 18-0, seven complete games, five shutouts, one save, a 1.23 ERA and a 32 2/3-inning scoreless streak. In 2006 he compiled a 13-3-1 record with one save, a 1.92 ERA and a 3-0 mark and a .095 ERA in the Roy Hobbs World Series.

Lopez has also served as a pitching coach for the baseball teams at Puyallup and Curtis High Schools and published a book about the mental aspects of pitching called Here's the Pitch.