Boston Red Sox stars before they made it to Major League Baseball
By Sam Colman
Red Sox CF Jackie Bradley Jr.:
He went to high school at Prince George High School in Prince George, Virginia before committing to play at the University of South Carolina. He decided to major in retail management.
In his freshman season in 2009, he had a .349 BA in 63 games. He had 89 hits, hit 11 home runs and drove in 46 runs for the Gamecocks. He also scored more runs than he had games played (69).
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In his sophomore season, JBJ played in 62 games and batted .368. He had 89 hits, 13 home runs and 60 runs batted in. Most notably, he helped his team immensely in winning the 2010 College World Series. JBJ was recognized as the College World Series Most Outstanding Player.
He returned for his junior year but missed a good chunk of the season with a wrist injury. He only played in 41 games and had a .247 batting average. He finished his college career with a .986 fielding percentage. He also had more hits than games played.
Jackie was later drafted with the 40th pick in the supplemental first round of the 2011 MLB Draft by the Boston Red Sox. He signed a $1.1 million signing bonus.
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Things have worked out pretty well for Jackie as he’s won a World Series with the Red Sox and is set to test free agency this upcoming winter. The Draft doesn’t always pan out for players and with the Minors being gutted by the league, it could be an even harder road to the Majors. For some that challenge is welcomed and for others, it may be the end of the line.