But one name caught my eye. So much so that I had to check and recheck three different places online to see if I was reading things correctly.
Wes Freeman.
The name probably doesn't mean much to you. Not should it.
This isn't exactly the Josh Hamilton story. Wes Freeman was a 16th round pick for the Bucs out of high school in 2008. He signed for a decent sized bonus, back when you could actually do that sort of thing. The guy was pretty well hyped as a well rounded talent, and at 6'4" 215 lbs, he seemed like the kind of guy who could do nasty things to a baseball.
He struggled initially, but put up a very nice .304/.338.492 slash line as a 21 year old in low A in 2011. A lottery ticket to be sure, but maybe one that would at least have a shot at sniffing the majors some day.
And then, at least seemingly out of nowhere, Freeman announced his retirement after a really rough 2012 season. Still, at just 22 and with a good pedigree he seemed like a player that might have a chance at moving up in the game.
And that...was pretty much it. And then suddenly his name appeared on the roster for A-ball Bradenton.
Apparently something changed, and he was in camp with the team for spring training. Admittedly, the guy is a 25 year old A ball player who has never played above A ball. He was at best a scratch off lottery ticket to begin with, and the story carries none of the peaks and valleys found in more famous iterations of this narrative.
But still, he's a guy who I'll be keeping an eye on this season in the box scores.
He struggled initially, but put up a very nice .304/.338.492 slash line as a 21 year old in low A in 2011. A lottery ticket to be sure, but maybe one that would at least have a shot at sniffing the majors some day.
And then, at least seemingly out of nowhere, Freeman announced his retirement after a really rough 2012 season. Still, at just 22 and with a good pedigree he seemed like a player that might have a chance at moving up in the game.
And that...was pretty much it. And then suddenly his name appeared on the roster for A-ball Bradenton.
Apparently something changed, and he was in camp with the team for spring training. Admittedly, the guy is a 25 year old A ball player who has never played above A ball. He was at best a scratch off lottery ticket to begin with, and the story carries none of the peaks and valleys found in more famous iterations of this narrative.
But still, he's a guy who I'll be keeping an eye on this season in the box scores.
He's acting as a player/coach, so it's probably just as likely as not that this is simply a way to springboard his coaching career. But who knows - maybe this can make for an interesting story.
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