usc2002
03-05-2002, 01:25 PM
From ESPN's Insider:
Former softballer on Braves' bubble
There is one fast-pitch softball player who is hoping that big league fans will pay to see him play. His name is Travis Wilson, a New Zealander whom, until the age of 19, had never played baseball on any level. The Braves spotted him at a fast-pitch softball tournament in Michigan and, eventually, signed him to a contract. He has been working his way through their system since and now, at 24 (not verified at press time), could win a roster spot as a utility player.
"He has a lot of versatility," Braves manager Bobby Cox said of Wilson. "He has a legitimate shot to make it." Indeed, Wilson plays first, second and third base as well as right and left field -- although not simultaneously. Wilson hit .415 in the Braves 2001 spring season and, according to Cox, "...came within a whisker of making our team."
In spite of a lack of exposure to actual baseball, Wilson played cricket and rugby and took up fast-pitch softball at the age of 9. He has made two minor league all-star teams on his way through the Braves' system. He grew up a Braves fan, L.C. Johnson of the Orlando Sentinel reports. Wilson told him, "Back when I was 14, 15 and 16, I used to watch the Braves on TV. That was the start of their heydays through the '90s, So I always had a dream of playing in the big leagues even though I didn't start playing the game until I was 19."
As we know, it is never a good idea to hand somebody a job based solely on a good showing in spring training, but the notion that someone whose first experience with the game came as a professional could make it all the way to the major leagues is an intriguing one.
Former softballer on Braves' bubble
There is one fast-pitch softball player who is hoping that big league fans will pay to see him play. His name is Travis Wilson, a New Zealander whom, until the age of 19, had never played baseball on any level. The Braves spotted him at a fast-pitch softball tournament in Michigan and, eventually, signed him to a contract. He has been working his way through their system since and now, at 24 (not verified at press time), could win a roster spot as a utility player.
"He has a lot of versatility," Braves manager Bobby Cox said of Wilson. "He has a legitimate shot to make it." Indeed, Wilson plays first, second and third base as well as right and left field -- although not simultaneously. Wilson hit .415 in the Braves 2001 spring season and, according to Cox, "...came within a whisker of making our team."
In spite of a lack of exposure to actual baseball, Wilson played cricket and rugby and took up fast-pitch softball at the age of 9. He has made two minor league all-star teams on his way through the Braves' system. He grew up a Braves fan, L.C. Johnson of the Orlando Sentinel reports. Wilson told him, "Back when I was 14, 15 and 16, I used to watch the Braves on TV. That was the start of their heydays through the '90s, So I always had a dream of playing in the big leagues even though I didn't start playing the game until I was 19."
As we know, it is never a good idea to hand somebody a job based solely on a good showing in spring training, but the notion that someone whose first experience with the game came as a professional could make it all the way to the major leagues is an intriguing one.