Tim Tebow is well-known for his time playing collegiate football and his short-tenured NFL career. As you may know, Tebow has taken his massive star and on-field kneeing into the Mets organization.
Everyone laughed at Tim Tebow when he said he wanted to play baseball. We all thought he was kidding, right? The man had no professional or collegiate baseball experience, and hadn’t played in an athletic game for years. Sure, he was a stud in high school, leading his team to the semifinals of the Florida state championship while winning all-county and all-state. However, high school baseball in Florida is an entirely different animal than Major League Baseball; anyone can attest to that.
Despite that, Tebow still managed to get an MLB workout and multiple contract offers. One of these offers was from the New York Mets, who he is currently under contract with. This seemed to be a publicity move for the Mets simply to sell Tebow jerseys and make more money than they spent. We haven’t seen a move this weird since the Padres selected Johnny Manziel in the 28th round of the 2014 draft. Sure, we have seen football players get drafted into MLB, but the fact that the Padres wasted a pick on Manziel is absurd.
Then it all happened. Tim Tebow managed to hit a bomb in his first professional plate appearance. Despite having a pretty horrendous showing after that, everyone was focused on that first home run. The Mets were likely counting their stacks of money when this happened, as they have signed a superstar that likely won’t even play in the majors.
But wait, once again Tim Tebow is shocking us all and making headlines.
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Yes, you read that right. Tim Tebow is playing designated hitter for the New York Mets in a Spring Training game against arguably the best team in baseball. Yes, the same Tim Tebow who was a heart-throb in college and was told he could never play in the NFL is batting eighth on a Major League Baseball team.
Like you, I don’t know how to comprehend this move. Part of me wants to be upset because Tebow is robbing the opportunities of guys who are trying to make this their career. It seems like a money move for Tebow in the sense that he is getting paid a lot more money than he deserves. This is like CM Punk going to the UFC and earning half a million dollars for one fight. The baseball naturalist in me hates this.
But then again, I love it. Tim Tebow seems to be making a legitimate effort to play baseball. Who are we to say how much work he’s putting in, and if he really wants it. Heck, the part of me that is upset is also satisfied because if it doesn’t work out, it shows the true craft of the game of baseball and how hard it really is.
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Regardless, I am sure you will see countless headlines regarding however Tim Tebow plays today. If he puts the ball in play he will likely win player of the game and sell countless Spring Training jerseys.